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i^i.^':^z^''^Z"i:a r^SaT^^T^-^ r-^^r*'s»T^>:x-r>-^— '^^r^ s«tj^ 







PRESENTED BY ALDERMAN WM. H. CORNELL. 



McSPEDON & BAKER, 

P r. I N T E K S . 




tfcnl\i! Giiiij 




Doatii of gtltcrnun. 



Resolved, That tlie Clerk of the Common Coimcil cause 
to be published, iu an appropriate manner, the report of 
the Committee of Arrangements on the obsequies of the 
Hon. Henry Clay, late United States Senator. 

D. T. VALENTINE, Clerk. 



Bm 






HE Joint Special Committee of the 

Common Council, appointed to make 

I arrangements for -rendering a suitable 

testimony of respect to the memory of 

the Hon. Henry Clay, late United States Senator from 

the State of Kentucky, respectfully 

REPORT: 



(9bsi:(]i|ies of 



iwrnr 



vtrt 



That they entered upon the performance of the melancholy 
duty assigned them, appreciating its high consideration, 
its sacred trust and arduous responsibilities, with a sin- 
cere conviction of its importance; conscious that, however 
assiduously their duties might be performed, no additional 
lustre would be attached to the memory of the great man 
whose death the united voice of the American people 
deplores. 

Your Committee deem it highly proper that something 
more than a superficial notice of the events of the day 
should be recorded in connection with their report of 
the obsequies of the man whose name stands first 
among the giant intellects of our great statesmen. Long 
as we had expected the event of his demise, and prepared 
as the whole country should have been for its announce- 
ment, we find ourselves wholly unfitted to record the sad 
intelligence. A great and good man has fallen. A nation 
mourns at his bier, and laments the loss of one who, in its 
greatest perils, has been its savior. One so far above and 
beyond ordinary men; so pure in public life; so unselfish 
and disinterested in his private life; so excellent a husband; 
so good a father; so faithful a friend, and so bold and inflex- 
ible a patriot, that we feel entirely unable to speak of 
him according to his worth. 

Henry Clay was a man to mark the age in which he 
lived. His mind was a fitting counterpart of the whole 
casket in which it was enshrined. His manners were 
graceful and impressive. Those who came in contact with 
him felt the charm of his influence; and this attachment of 
his friends grew upon them, till no political misfortune 
could remove it. They were his friends in prosperity 
and in the prospect of power, but more his friends in ad- 

6 



■■I — I- ■■ ■■ 



ilei)l\a biql). 



versity. Nature had formed him in her finest moidd, and 
had stamped him with the seal of her own nobility. The 
heart of the nation throbs with melancholy emotions at 
the departure, from the field of his glories, of the man 
whom the whole world revered as a patriot, from his innate 
love of country — as a statesman, from intuition and from 
practice — as a philanthropist, from pure benevolence and a 
love of liberty. The dignified graces of Mr. Clay's char- 
acter can best be appreciated by those who knew him in 
the private walks of life. His impulses were generous and 
disinterested. He had an utter scorn of all that was sor- 
did, selfish or deceitful. He who could say, " I would rather 
be risht than be President," was not likelv to hold in hio-h 
esteem those whose ambition was unregulated by principle, 
or whose moral sense was facile to the moulding touch of 
self-interest. His eminent services in the councils of the 
nation, rendered during a series of more than fifty years, 
(a circumstance with few parallels in the annals of the 
world,) will ever adorn the brightest pages of American 
history. The purity of his motives, his stern and unre- 
lenting intrepidity for his country's rights and her glory, 
will forever exist with fervency and freshness in the mem- 
ory of a grateful people. When foreign outrage left his 
country no alternative but disgrace, or a resort to arms, 
he was found among the foremost to maintain the dignity 
and honor of his country. Born and cradled amid tlie 
excitement of the Eevolution, the first songs which the ears 
of his childhood heard, were those which the struggle for 
freedom inspired. The important period tlirough which 
he has lived in such prominence before the world, will ever 
render his memory inseparable from the history of his 
country. As in future years the results of civil and re- 

7 



jil" ■. J...!..™? 



ly' Obstjqi|ies of 



Qnniii^ 



ligious liberty in South America shall glow with increas- 
ing brightness, their fires shall add new lustre to the name 
of him who was the early and ardent advocate of their 
rights. As long as the heroism of Greece shall be admired, 
and the garlands of her poets endure, so long shall the 
name of Henry Clay be cherished by every heart that 
beats in unison with the pantings of liberty. 

His intellect was expansive and comprehensive; his elo- 
quence vigorous, and, to an extraordinary degree, fascinat- 
ing and persuasive ; his heart brave and honest ; his affec- 
tions warm and pure, and his patriotism ardent, devoted 
and disinterested. When the factions and calumnies of 
the present day are past by, succeeding generations Avill 
pronounce a grateful eulogy upon his public services, and 
rank him among the most distinguished public benefac- 
tors. Posterity will then pronounce, with equal truth and 
justice, "during the course of a long and arduous public 
life, he made his country's interests the end and aim of his 
exertions. He never sacrificed a principle to secure the 
favor of a party, or yielded an opinion from the fear of 
its unpopularity. He sought first and principally the ex- 
tension of republican freedom, and as the best means of 
securing it, labored with all the energy of his eloquence, 
to maintain unimpaired the union of the states. He incor- 
porated himself with no party that regarded the general 
government in the light of an unwieldy and inert mass, 
powerless of good; but supported the true theory which 
regards the union as an active and vivifying principle, 
pervading all sections, cementing them together by the ties 
of mutual interest and convenience, and availing itself of 
its great resources to produce the most certain and expe- 
ditious communication between them." 

8 





^nnoiuutmnit of the ilfath of M\u) (Llan. 

Henry Clay died iu Washington City, D. C, on Tues- 
day, June 29th, 1852, at seventeen minutes past eleven 
o'clock, in the seventy-sixth year of his age. His death 
was announced in this city, by telegraph, about half past 
eleven o'clock, a. m. The sad news was soon spread to all 
parts of the city. All the public buildings, places of 
amusement, the shipping in the harbor, and every flag-staff 
immediately displayed the American flag at half mast, and 
a melancholy gloom was thrown over the whole city. The 
courts, immediately on receipt of the sad intelligence, de- 
livered eloquent eulogies, and adopted resolutions expres- 
sive of the deep sympathy entertained for the deceased, 
and all public meetings, as an evidence of respect for his 
memory, adjourned. Measures were also immediately taken 
for convening the Common Council, for the purpose of 
adopting suitable arrangements expressive of the high es- 
teem in which the memory of the distinguished dead is held, 

9 



Your Committee, in view of the fores:oin2: suffffestions 
have compiled, from authentic and reliable sources, a sum- 
mary of the proceedings at Washington, from the hour 
of his death; along the route; in this city, and until the 
arrival of the body at Lexington, Kentucky, its final rest- 
ing place; estimating a full record of all the transactions 
as valuable reminiscences for future reference, and adopted 
as a slight testimony of the appreciation entertained of 
his many virtues, his eminent services, and patriotic devo- 
tion to his countrv. 



i 



g>^* 




^^^^ 



and of rendering such public demonstrations as are usually 
called for, by the citizens generally, upon similar occasions. 

On the day of Mr. Clay's death at Washington, the 
President of the United States issued the annexed circular 
to the several Heads of Departments : 

Executive Mansion, 
Tuesday, half past 12 o'clock, p. m. 
Sir : — The tolling bells announce the death of the Hon. 
Henry Clay. Though this event has been long antici- 
pated, yet the painful bereavement could never be fully 
realized. I am sure all hearts are at this moment too sad 
to attend to business ; and I therefore respectfully sug- 
gest that your department be closed for the remainder of' 
the day. 

MILLvlRD FILLMORE. 

Both branches of the Common Council were convened on 
the next day, when the following proceedings were had : 

IJroteciiings ni \\n (Lonuuoii CoiuitiL 



BOARD OF ALDERMEN. 

JUNE 30, 1852. 

Present — Richard T. Compton, Esq., President; Abraham 
Moore, Dudley Haley, John Boyce, William M. Tweed, 
William J. Brisley, Charles Francis, Wesley Smith, 
Daniel F. Tiemann, James M. Bard, S. L. H. Ward, 
Asahel A. Denman, William H. Cornell. 

The President announced that the Board was couvened 
by the Mayor, pursuant to a request made by a majority 
of the members elected. 




' ifer)l*y G\^. 





The following message was received from his Honor the 
Mayor, announcing the death of the Hon. Henry Clay: 

Mayor's Office, 
New York, June 30th, 1852. 

To the Honorable the Common Council: 

Gentlemen : — The nation is called on to mourn the loss 
of one of her wisest and best sons. Henry Clay, the de- 
voted patriot, the enlightened statesman, the eloquent 
orator, is no more. After a lingering and painful illness, 
he closed a long and eventful life, leaving behind him a 
name which will be cherished and admired, wherever the 
English tongue is spoken, as the champion of freedom — 
the defender of the oppressed. His death is not merely a 
national loss, but throughout the world the friends of 
freedom will mourn it. Long years of devotion to his 
country's welfare, and unceasing efforts for her advance- 
ment, have secured to him the gratitude and affection of 
his countrymen and friends, as warm and true as man 
could ever claim. But I need not speak of Mr. Clay's 
character or services — they are inscribed, in letters of im- 
perishable glory, on the pages of our country's history. 

I make the official announcement of his death, assured 
that the representatives of the first commercial city of the 
Western world, will testify their regard for the memory 
of the departed patriot and sage, by such measures as are 
adapted to the mournful occasion. 

A. C. KINGSLAND, Mayor. 
Which was accepted, and ordered on file. 

In connection with the above. Alderman Cornell pre- 
sented the folloAving preamble and resolutions : 



PC 




0')SC(]1|ICS 0' 



"mm 



m 



Whereas, The melancholy and afflicting intelligence has 
been officially communicated to this Board, that death has 
closed the mortal career of the illustrious Henry Clay, 
United States Senator, the renowned statesman, the ac- 
complished diplomatist, and the eloquent orator; and 

Whereas, It is l)efitting us, as a great and free nation, 
possessing a warm and ardent appreciation of the virtuous 
and patriotic services of the illustrious men of the re- 
public, while living, and that, when an all-wise Providence, 
in his infinite wisdom, deems it necessary to call from this 
earthly pilgrimage, one of its most eminent personages, we 
deeply feel the oppressing sadness that surrounds us — and 
that, in the demise of Henry Clay, we fully realize a na- 
tion's bereavement. Not only have his virtues and talents 
endeared him to the people of the United States, but to 
the whole world, who will, with melancholy cheerfulness, 
render to his memory their unanimous tribute of respect. 
The justly renowned, but lamented Henry Clay, has, from 
his indomitable energy, his accomplished statesmanship, 
and his diplomatic ability, occupied, in the councils of the 
nation, the highest positions of honor for more than half a 
century. His heroic conduct, through a long and useful 
life, entirely devoted to the service of his country, will 
forever serve as a bright example for the present and fu- 
ture generations. His noble and disinterested love of 
country has stamped him emphatically one of the greatest 
men of his time. His glowing sentiments of patriotism 
knew no South, no North, no East, no West. He was 
generous without ostentation, thoroughly republican in his 
sentiments, and simple in his manners, winning respect and 
golden opinions everywhere, among the virtuous and good, 
by the calm dignity and urbanity of his deportment. 

12 



itei]i\ii Clqti, 



.ll!ll"l.,. 



Dearly beloved in Lis family circle, and by all who had 
daily or occasional intercourse with him, he has left be- 
hind him a name that future generations will revere and 
bless. 

When the sombre clouds of fanaticism, with their dark, 
foreboding aspect, threatened our country's peace, the great 
champion of human freedom, notwithstanding he had, like 
the venerable Cincinnatus, retired from the turmoils of 
public life, came forth again at his country's call, once 
more buckling on the mighty armor of conciliation, sac- 
rificing all factions of party, dispelling the aspirations of 
sectional dissensions for the preservation and perpetuity 
of our glorious constitution and the Union; and thus we 
find him expiring at the capital of the nation, among the 
representatives of this wide extended republic. His 
powerful and comprehensive mind, ardently enlisted in 
the cause of his country, was ever ready to assist in pro- 
moting its glory, usefulness, and indissolubility. He was 
enraptured with profound respect and love for the princi- 
ples of our republican and moral institutions, many of 
which acknowledge, with paternal gratitude, numberless 
favors from his fostering care. But the sun of his personal 
usefulness has forever set, and the nation will long deplore 
his loss. His deeds, like the everlasting hills, will stand 
as noble examples to guide posterity in promoting the best 
interests of our happy Union ; therefore be it 

Resolved, That the chambers of the respective Boards of 
the Common Council be draped in mourning, and remain 
so for ninety days; that the members wear the usual badge 
of mourning for the same period; that it be earnestly rec- 
ommended to the citizens to close their places of business 
on the day of the funeral obsequies; that the proprietors 

13 



P 





of public places, and owners of ships and other vessels, be 
requested to hoist their flags at half mast during the day. 

Resolved, That a Committee of seven members from each 
Board, together with the President thereof, be appointed 
to carry out the foregoing preamble and resolution, and to 
make all such arrangements as they may think advisable 
and proper. 

Resolved, That the Clerk of the Common Council be di- 
rected to transmit a certified copy of the foregoing pream- 
ble and resolutions to the family of the deceased patriot. 

Which were unanimously adopted, and Aldermen Cor- 
nell, Smith, Brisley, Tweed, Bard, Ward and Boyce, 
together with the President, appointed such Committee on 
the part of this Board. 



Alderman William M. Tweed, of the Seventh Ward, 
seconded the motion of Alderman Cornell, and said, — 

Mr. President : — Our whole country is again in tears 1 
Scarcely were the remains of the lamented Calhoun cold 
in the tomb, ere another brilliant and magnanimous states- 
man has gone to his silent and eternal repose ! " When 
sorrows come, they come not in single spies, but in battal- 
ions," said one of old, whose wisdom I fully realize on this 
mournful occasion. 

Sir, I trust that I love the glorious principles of democ- 
racy as life itself; but I thank God that I am American 
enough never to forget those who never forgot their coun- 
try. Those great Americans, who have literally worn 
themselves out in the public service, I will ever hold in 
grateful remembrance, regardless of their political or re- 
ligious creed. 

14 





The great fathers of the Revolutiou were chietiy super- 
seded by Jackson, Calhoun, Clay and AVebster, to 
whom our mighty destinies have been mainly intrusted 
during the present century. The lot of these illustrious 
men was wisely cast in States, whose domestic institutions 
and local interests, were, in many respects, widely dissim- 
ilar. But they all realized that they breathed the same 
national air, — all amicably met in the same national coun- 
cil, — and all watched, with sleepless eyes, the common 
welfare of their beloved country. Webster alone remains, 
like the last leaf of a withered foliage. Jackson, " whose 
eye, in battle, flashed like a rifle, and whose voice drowned 
the cannon," was first gathered to his fathers. Calhoun, 
whose eagle eye, compressed lip, and prophetic voice com- 
manded the admiration of his countrymen, followed the 
wise and courageous Jackson, xind now we are sum- 
moned to the mausoleum of Henry Clay ! 

On this solemn occasion, it affords me a melancholy 
pleasure to briefly scan the past. Being probably the 
youngest member of this body, I cannot be supposed to 
have long mingled in public affairs, but, with all deference, 
I trust that I am tolerably familiar with our national his- 
tory, and that I am especially familiar with the lives of 
Jefferson and Hamilton, those great intellectual giants 
of the Revolution, who laid the eternal foundation of the 
two leading political parties of our country. And it has 
been my happy fortune to be a living witness of a moiety 
of the public career of JACKSOJiT and Calhoun, (the warm 
admirers of Jefferson,) and of Clay, a devoted disciple 
of Hamilton. Now, although they all widely differed on 
those great national questions that have divided and dis- 
tracted the country during most of the present century, 

15 




0bsc(^i|ies of 



yet they all profoundly loved their country, and strove to 
surpass each other in their enthusiastic efforts to perpetu- 
ate our glorious institutions to the remotest period. 

Sir, with what national pride should we all contemplate 
the youthful Jackson, when, at the peril of instant death, 
he hurled defiance at the British officer who commanded 
him to black his boots, while in captivity. Again, behold 
him, with his knapsack, in his solitary march from Caro- 
lina to Tennessee, in search of a forest home, — as Judge 
and Representative, — a Senator with Jefferson, in '96, 
listening to the wise counsels of that illustrious statesman; 
contending hand to hand, and foot to foot, with the South 
Western Indians, — at the battle of New Orleans, — the 
twice-elected president of the freest, happiest, and might- 
iest nation in the whole journey of the sun, — utterly de- 
stroying a gigantic national moneyed institution, because 
he conceived it to lie a deadly foe to democratic liberty; 
a man who loved and served his country with all the zeal 
and fidelity of the immortal Washington. 

Now behold the timid and thoughtful Calhoun, while 
a New England student, as he enters the legislature of 
South Carolina, a mere youth, — in the halls of Congress, 
and in the front rank as an orator and statesman, — his en- 
ergy and patriotism during our country's second struggle 
with Great Britain, — resisting the adoption, by Congress, 
of the tariff, abolition, and overshadowing monetary 
schemes of northern and western statesmen, — in his mem- 
orable collision with Jackson, on nullification, — in the 
Senate, breasting the wide-spread bankruptcy of '37, and 
restoring order out of chaos, — his great ability as Chief 
of the War and State Departments, — his masterly diplo- 
macy in the acquisition of Texas, — his dying efforts on the 

16 




lUilliniu. 




floor of tlic Senate; and in all we behold the deep and 
thrilling- eloquence of Demosthenes, the wisdom of Jef- 
ferson, and the patriotism of Jackson. 

And now behold Henry Clay, in the mill of Hanover, 
a poor boy, — as he scales the Alleghanies in pursuit of a 
new abode in the wilds of Kentucky, — in the legislature of 
his adopted state, — in the lower House of Congress, on 
the leading Committee, and Speaker at several consecu- 
tive sessions, — as the advocate of peace abroad, and of 
peace at home, both in the private and public arena; 
whose burning eloquence in the Senate assembly, paralyzed 
the conspirators against the liberties of his country. Now, 
although I opposed, and ever shall, the leading features of 
his national policy, yet I always admired his sterling pa- 
triotism, his powerful eloquence, and his earnest advoca- 
tion of what he conceived to be essential to his country's 
welfare. 

Mr. President, and members of the Common Council of 
New York : Where are the men to fill the vacant seats of 
these exalted statesmen ? Alas ! they do not exist. But 
men of kindred genius will again arise among us, if we are 
true to the God of liberty and of nations, — if we are true 
to that beneficent Being, who bore us in triumph through 
the bloody scenes of the Revolution, and wiio has so faith- 
fully guarded our liberties to this remote day. Jackson, 
Calhoun, Clay! let the verdure of their graves forever 
bloom, and emit undying fragrance. Forever let their sa- 
cred memory be green in our hearts. Forever let us 
gratefully remember their noble deeds, and impart them 
to our children, as worthy of their highest emulation. Let 
those now on the stage of human action, closely imitate 
their spotless example and their incredible sacrifices from 

2 17 



1 






C^bj!cqi|ijs of 



youth to age. Let us profoundly clierisli the precious 
relics of political wisdom they have bequeathed us, and 
adopt them as genial sunlight in our pilgrimage through 
the dark and untrodden future. Let us do all this, and 
God will bless us (as worthy of his continued protection) 
with another brilliant galaxy of mighty spirits, to guard 
us against those, within and without our borders, who 
would effect our country's ruin. 

Three noble oaks are fell'd at last, 

That stood erect so many years, 
'Neath summer skies, and winter's blast, 

Falling amid their country's tears ! 

Jackson! Calhoun! Clay! touching sounds — 

That thrill the soul like muffled drum ! 
Names wont to cheer, 'mid fortune's frowns, 

Like the full moon or mid-day sun. 

Who fought and spoke in tlirilling strain, 

For liberty and all her train ; 
Who all were true, from youth to age, 

As any of historic page. 

Farewell, fathers ! cold in the gi-ound ! 

Who loved and served thy race so well ; 
Thy sons still live, to guard thy mound, 

And thy great deeds their children tell. 

On motion, the Board then adjourned. 

D. T. VALENTINE, Clerk. 



^= 




18 



BOARD OF ASSISTA:VT ALDER3IEN. 

JUNE 30, li52. 

Present — Jonathan Trotter, Esq., President, in tlie cliair; 
Messrs. Brown, Tait, Mabbatt, O'Brien, Rodman, Wood- 
ward, Wells, Anderson, Bouton, McGown, Wright, 
Wlicelan, Barker, Rogers and A^aleutine. 

The President announced that the Board had been called 
together by his Honor the Mayor, pursuant to the third 
section of the amended charter, for tlie purpose of taking 
such measures as the members may deem proper in relation 
to the death of the Hon. Henry Clay. 

Mr. Barker presented the following resolutions, viz : 

Resolved, That this Board has received, with feelings of 
deep regret, the intelligence of the death of Hon. Henry 
Clay, late a Senator in Congress, from the State of Ken- 
tucky. 

Resolved, That in common with our constituents and the 
whole nation, we mourn the loss of the great man who has 
filled and adorned so many public stations, and in whom, 
by a happy combination, were united the highest character- 
istics of the orator, the patriot, the statesman and the sage. 

Resolved, That our admiration of his character, and our 
sorrow at his loss, are increased by the reflection that he 
crowned his splendid labors by devoting, with all the 
ardor of his earlier years, the evening of his life, and the last 
efforts of his genial spirit and his matchless eloquence, to 
reconciling sectional animosities, and to vindicating and 
preserving that glorious Union, in whose service he had so 
long and so faithfully labored. 

]<> 







/ e)bscc][|ieg of 

iiiiinTTiiT;7~~ 



Resolved, That it is our solace, on this melancholy occa- 
sion, to reflect that the close of his life was srrene and 
tranquil, supported by the consolations of affection and 
religion ; that the sun of his glory descended unclouded ; 
that he now reposes, all feelings of party forgotten, and 
by universal consent, and with a fame forever identified in 
the annals of the world, with the history of the country 
and of liberty. 

Resolved, That penetrated by these feelings, and desirous 
of testifying, however faintly, our appreciation of a char- 
acter so lofty and services so distinguished, a Committee 
of five from the Board of Assistant Aldermen be appointed, 
to confer with a like Committee from the Board of Alder- 
men, to devise suitable measures, on behalf of the city of 
New York, in honor of the memory of the deceased. 

The resolutions having been read, Mr. Baeker rose, and 
addressed the Board as follows : 

Mr. Peesident : — I feel embarrassed in attempting to 
add any remarks to the resolutions which have been pre- 
sented upon this mournful_^occasion, for^I feel my incompe- 
tency to the task. 

We have been convened this evening, on the occasion of 
the death of the Hon.HENEY Clay, who has long been the 
pride and the glory of the American republic. 

Heney Clay, the man of the nation, who for lialf a 
century has stood first in the front ranks, as an orator, a 
statesman and a patriot, is now numbered with the dead. 
That great and heroic soul, which knew no impulses but 
those of patriotism and philanthropy, has passed away 
from these mortal scenes. The millions of tliis wide ex- 
tended country, with the millions of the friends of liberty 

20 




-', .lA^II^.- 



'/ 



iUoi'!! t^iiUJ 



Fm:i'.ii!"ul 





in other lands, will receive tlic news of this event with 
emotions too deep for utterance. 

At the mention of his name, Ave are now liushed in 
silence and grief. There is now no hurrah for him who so 
often carried with him the people with an enthusiasm so 
unbounded. He lias made his last appeal to his country- 
men, and that was for the union of this glorious confed- 
eracy. We all know how that appeal has been answered. 
He is now silent, and sleeps the sleep of death, but he has 
left with us the triumph of his glorious deeds to brighten 
our path for the future. 

It is needless, in this place, to recount the various acts of 
a life devoted to the service of his country. They are the 
theme of youth and the admiration of age. 

His countrymen had been for some time warned that a 
mortal disease had attacked his majestic and stately form, 
yet the melancholy tidings of his death, though softened 
by their expected coming, have sank deeply and perma- 
nently into every heart. 

The great man of this nation has been taken away, but 
time, endless time, will recall the glories of his past life, 
and many a page of his country's history will be adorned 
and illuminated with the actions, the wisdom, and the elo- 
quence of Henry Clay. 

The resolutions were unanimously adopted, and Messrs. 
Barker, Woodward, Tait, Anderson and Wright, ap- 
pointed the Committee. 

Mr. Barker then moved that the resolutions be sent to 
the Board of Aldermen for concurrence. 



few 



Which was carried. 



21 



y.V'n .iimi,,5sa 



0')se(]i|ies of 



The above resolutions were subsequently received from 
the Board of Aldermen, so amended as to increase the 
Committee to seven. 

Whereupon, the amendment was concurred in, and the 
President added Messrs. McGown and Valentine to said 
Committee. 

FROM THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN. 

Preamble and resolutions in favor of adopting suitable 
measures in relation to the death of Henry Clay. 

Unanimously concurred in. 

On motion, the Board then adjourned. 

EDWARD SANFORD, Clerk. 




Pending the proceedings in this city, ceremonies of the 
most interesting, but melancholy character, commensurate 
with the love the deceased was held by the nation, and 
which your Committee deem worthy of being recorded, 
took place at the Capital. 

|uncr;il .^olcnnntics in Mitsliiugtoii. 

Pursuant to the arrangements prescribed by the Com- 
mittee of the Senate, the members of the Senate and of the 
House of Representatives, together with public bodies and 
associations, military companies, and civic authorities, as- 
sembled at the National Hotel, where the body had lain 
since life departed; and from thence the melancholy funeral 
procession passed to the Senate chamber, so long the 
theatre of his glories. 

22 




[;!4.Lj^,»h.;^,.B.!i,.i.. I ..,.'==m 

r W ' -— 




As the body was borne to tlio centre of tlie chamber, 
the Rev. Dr. Butler, Chaphxin to the Senate, in full ca- 
nonicals, read part of the Episcopal ritual — 

" I am the resurrection and the life, saith the Lord." 

In consonance with the solemn service over the dead was 
the scene there presented — sombre and sad. 

The President of the United States, and the Speaker of 
the House of Representatives, were seated with the Presi- 
dent of the Senate. The body of the Senate, the repre- 
sentatives of state sovereignties, were grouped, on the 
two innermost semicircular rows of chairs, around the 
lifeless form of their late colleague. The Committee of 
Arrangements, and the Committee to convey the body to 
Kentucky, and the pall-bearers, with the Kentucky dele- 
gation in the House of Representatives, as chief mourners, 
and a number of personal devoted friends, were also in 
close proximity to the inanimate form of the deceased. 

The members of the House of Representatives filled the 
outer circles, except such parts as were devoted, to the 
large diplomatic corps, the Cabinet of the President of 
the United States, the officers of the Array and Navy, 
among whom were Major-General Scott, Commander-in- 
chief, and Commodore Morrls. With the Municipal 
Councils of the city of Washington, were the officers of 
neighboring cities, and others, official and unofficial, 

A shield of fragrant and sweetly-culled flowers was 
placed upon the sarcophagus, as a memorial of afl'ection for 
the deceased statesman within. The pure white and bright- 
ly variegated flowers contrasted sadly with the rich folding 



Wiiff.llll1BWi< 



C""K^et]Hies of 



^i'JLii^'u 



drapery of black cloth, additionally relieved by its silver 
ornaments. The sarcophagus, in which the remains were 
inurned, resembles the outlines of the human body. The 
handles, the face-plate, the plate for inscribing the name, 
and other plates, are of massive silver, beautifully wrought 
and chased, having appropriate emblems, among which 
appear wreaths of laurel and oak, with a full-blown rose, 
and sprig of oak with its acorns detached from their 
parent stem, showing the work of the fell destroyer. The 
plate, near the centre of the sarcophagus, bore the simple 
inscription. 




The utmost silence prevailed ; all present, including the 
crowded auditory in the galleries and lobbies, were deeply 
impressed with the solemnity of the occasion. Amidst 
the contemplations to which this scene gave being, the 
chaplain's voice broke on the listening ear — 

" But-some man will S!xy, How are the dead raised up? and with what 
body do they come ?" 

The answer is furnished by the residue of the fifteenth 
chapter of 1st Corinthians, which the chaplain impressively 
read for the consolation of the bereaved living. 

24 




FUNERAL OF THE HON. HENRY CLAY 



REV. C. M. BUTLER, D.D. 

CHAPLAIN OF THE SENATE. 



How is the strong staff broken, and the beautiful rod !"— Jer. xlviii. 17, 



" Before all hearts and miuds in this aiio-ust assemblao-e 
the vivid image of one man stands. To some aged eve 
he may come forth, from the dim past, as he appeared in 
the neighboring city of his native state, a lithe and ardent 
youth, full of promise, of ambition, and of hope. To 
another, he may appear as, in a distant state, in the courts of 
justice, erect, high strung, bold, wearing the fresh forensic 
laurel on his young and open brow. Some may see him 
in the earlier, and some in the later, stages of his career, on 
this conspicuous theatre of his renown; and to the former 
he will start out, on the background of the past, as he 
appeared in the neighboring chamber, tall, elate, impas- 
sioned — with flashing eye and suasive gesture, and clarion 
voice, an already acknowledged ' Agamemnon, King of, 
Men;' and to others, he will again stand in this chamber 
' the strong staff' of the bewildered and staggering state,' 



'' (9bse(]i|i(js of 



and ' the beautiful rod/ rich with the blossoms of genius, 
and of patriotic love and hope, the life of youth still re- 
maining to give animation, grace, and exhaustless vigor, 
to the wisdom, the experience, and the gravity of age. To 
others he may be present as he sat in the chamber of sick- 
ness, cheerful, majestic, gentle — his mind clear, his heart 
warm, his hope fixed on heaven, peacefully preparing for 
his last great change. To the memory of the minister of 
God, he appears as the penitent, humble, and peaceful 
Christian, who received him with the affection of a father, 
and joined with him, in solemn sacrament and prayer, with 
the gentleness of a woman and the humility of a child. ' Out 
of the strong came forth sweetness.' ' How is the strong 
staff broken, and the beautiful rod ! ' But not before this 
assembly only, does the venerated image of the departed 
statesman, this day, distinctly stand. For more than a 
thousand miles — East, West, North and South — it is known 
and remembered, that at this place and hour, a nation's 
representatives assemble to do honor to him whose fame is 
now a nation's heritage. A nation's mighty heart throbs 
against this capitol, and beats through you. In many 
cities banners droop, bells toll, cannons boom, funereal 
draperies wave. In crowded streets, and on sounding 
wharfs, upon steamboats and upon cars, in fields and in 
work-shops, in homes, in schools, millions of men, women 
and children, have their thoughts fixed upon this scene, 
and say mournfully to each other, ' This is the hour in 
which, at the capitol, the nation's representatives are 
burying Henry Clay.' Burying Henry Clay! Bury 
the records of your country's history — bury the hearts of 
living millions — bury the mountains, the rivers, the lakes, 
and the spreading lands from sea to sea, with which his name 




is inseparably associated, and even then you would not bury 
Henry Clay — for he lives in other lands, and speaks in 
other tongues, and to other times than ours. 

" A great mind, a great heart, a great orator, a great 
career, have been consigned to history. She will record 
his rare gifts of deep insight, keen discrimination, clear 
statement, rapid combination, plain, direct and convincing 
logic. She will love to dwell on that large, generous, 
magnanimous, open, forgiving heart. She will linger, with 
fond delight, on the recorded and traditional stories of an 
eloquence that was so masterful and stirring, because it 
was but himself, struggling to come forth on the living- 
words — because, though the words were brave and strong, 
and beautiful and melodious, it was felt that, behind them 
there was a soul, braver, stronger, more beautiful, and 
more melodious, than language could express. She will 
point to a career of statesmanship which has, to a remark- 
able degree, stamped itself on the public policy of the 
country, and reached, in beneficent practical results, the 
fields, the looms, the commercial marts, and the quiet 
homes of all the land, where his name was, with the de- 
parted fathers, and is with the living children, and will be, 
with successive generations, an honored household word. 

" I feel, as a man, the grandeur of this career. But as 
an immortal, with this broken wreck of mortality before 
me, with this scene as the ' end-all ' of human glory, I feel 
that no career is truly great but that of him who, whether 
he be illustrious or obscure, lives to the future in the pros 




I^' ^lp^^ 



I'' ^bsetlqics of 



'ii:i''! 




alize in the calm and meditative close of life. I feel that 
I but utter the lessons which, living, were his last and best 
convictions, and which, dead, would be, could he speak to 
us, his solemn admonitions, when I say that statesmanship 
is then only glorious when it is Christian: and that man is 
then only safe, and true to his duty and his soul, when the 
life which he lives in the flesh is the life of faith in the Son 
of God. 

" Great, indeed, is the privilege, and most honorable and 
useful is the career, of a Christian American statesman. 
He perceives that civil liberty came from the freedom 
wherewith C heist made its early martyrs and defenders 
free. He recognizes it as one of the twelve manner of 
fruits on the Tree of Life which, while its lower branches 
furnish the best nutriment of earth, hangs on its topmost 
boudis, which wave in Heaven, fruits that exhilarate the 
immortals. Recognizing the State as God's institution, 
he will perceive that his own ministry is divine. Living 
consciously under the eye, and in the love and fear of God; 
redeemed by the blood of Jesus; sanctified by His spirit, 
loving His law, he will give himself, in private and in pub- 
lic, to the service of his Savior. He will not admit that 
lie may act on less lofty principles in public than in private 
life, and that he must be careful of his moral influence in 
the small sphere of home and neighborhood, but need take 
no heed of it when it stretches over continents and crosses 
seas. He will know that his moral responsibility can not 
be divided and distributed among others. When he is 
told that adherence to the strictest moral and religious 
principle is incompatible with a successful and eminent ca- 
reer, he will denounce the assertion as a libel on the ven- 
erated Fathers of the Republic— a libel on the honored liv- 

8 



km 



r-^= ^"^"^^^S 


B'lli'jMi -jw 



ing and the illustrious dead — libel against a great and 
Christian nation — a libel against God himself, who has de- 
clared and made ' godliness profitable for the life that now 
is.' He will strive to make laws the transcripts of the 
character, and institutions illustrations of the providence of 
G CD. He will scan with admiration and awe the purposes of 
God in the future history of the world, in throwing open 
this wide continent, from sea to sea, as the abode of free- 
dom, intelligence, plenty, prosperity and peace; and feel 
that, in giving his energies with a patriot's love to the 
welfare of his country, he is consecrating himself, with a 
Christian's zeal, to the extension and establishment of the 
Redeemer's kingdom. Compared with a career like this, 
which is equally open to those whose public sphere is large 
or small, how paltry are the trade of patriotism, the tricks 
of statesmanship, the rewards of successful baseness ! This 
hour, this scene, the venerated dead, the country, the world, 
the present, the future, God, duty, heaven, hell, speak 
trumpet-tongued to all in the service of their country, to 
beware how they lay polluted or unhallowed hands 

• Upon the ark 
Of her magiiificpnt and awful cause.' 

" Such is the character of that statesmanship Avhieh alone 
would have met the full approval of the venerated dead. 
For the religion which always had a place in the convic- 
tions of his mind, had also, within a recent period, entered 
into his experience and seated itself in his heart. Twenty 
vears since, he w^rote— ' I am a member of no religious 
sect, and I am not a professor of religion. I regret that I 
am not. I wish that I was, and trust that I shall be. I 
have, and always have had, a profound regard for Chris- 

29 




a 



nni:iiii!'ii,. 






'^^iJm 



m 



1;==: 



%m 



tianity, the religion of my fathers, and for its rites, its 
usages and observances.' That feeling proved that the 
seed sown by pious parents, was not dead, though stifled. 
A few years since, its dormant life was re-awakened. He 
was baptized in the communion of the Protestant Episcopal 
Church; and during his sojourn in this city, he was in full 
communion with Trinity Parish. 

" It is since his withdrawal from the sittings of the Sen- 
ate, that I have been made particularly acquainted with 
his religious opinions, character, and feelings. From the 
commencement of his illness he always expressed to me 
his persuasion that its termination would be fatal. From 
that period until his death, it was my privilege to hold fre- 
quent religious services and conversations with him in his 
room. He avowed to me his full faith in the great leading 
doctrines of the Gospel — the fall and sinfulness of man, the 
divinity of Christ, the reality and necessity of the Atone- 
ment, the need of being born again by the Spirit, and salva- 
tion through faith in a crucified Redeemer. His own 
personal hopes of salvation he ever and distinctly based 
on the promises and the grace of Christ. Strikingly per- 
ceptible on his naturally impetuous and impatient char- 
acter, was the influence of grace in producing submission 
and a ' patient waiting for Christ,' and for death. On 
one occasion, he spoke to me of the pious example of 
one very near and dear to him, as that which led him 
deeply to feel and earnestly to seek for himself the reality 
and the blessedness of religion. On another occasion, he 
told me that he had been striving to form a conception of 
heaven; and he enlarged upon the mercy of that provision 
by which our Savior became a partaker of our humanity, 
that our hearts and hopes might fix themselves on him. 




ESS^^Q*^ 






On fiuotlicr occasion, when lie was snpposed to 1)0 very 
near liis end, I expressed to liim the lioi)C that his mind 
and heart were at peace, and that he was able to rest with 
cheerful confidence on the promises and in the merits of 
the Redeemer. He said, with much feeling, that he endea- 
vored to, and trusted that he did repose his salvation upon 
Cheist ; that it was too late for him to look at Christian- 
ity in the light of speculation; that he had never doubted 
of its truth; and that he now wished to throw himself upon 
it as a practical and blessed remedy. Very soon after this, 
I administered to him the sacrament of the Lord's Supper. 
Being extremely feeble, and desirous of having his mind 
undiverted, no persons were present but his son and his 
servant. It was a scene long to be remembered. There, in 
that still chamber, at a week-day noon, the tides of life 
flowing all around us, three disciples of the Savioe— the 
minister of God, the dying statesman, and his servant, a 
partaker of the like precious faith — commemorated their 
Savior's dying love. He joined in the blessed sacrament 
with great feeling and solemnity — now pressing his hands 
together, and now spreading them forth, as the words of 
the service expressed the feelings, desires, supplications, 
confessions, and thanksgivings of his heart. His eyes were 
dim with grateful tears, his heart was full of peace and 
love ! After this he rallied, and again I was permitted 
frequently to join with him in religious services, conversa- 
tion and prayer. He grew in grace and in the knowledge 
of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Among the books 
which, in connection with the Word of God, he read most, 
were 'Jay's Morning and Evening Exercises;' the 'Life 
of Dr. Chalmers,' and ' The Christian Philosopher Trium- 
phant in Death.' His hope continued to the end, to be, 

31 





a 



EHnu 



mm^ 



tliougii true and real, tremulous with humility rather than 
rapturous with assurance. When he felt most the weari- 
ness of his protracted sufferings, it sufficed to suggest to 
him that his Heavenly Father doubtless knew that, after 
a life so long and stirring, and tempted, such a discipline 
of chastening and suffering was needful to make him moie 
meet for the inheritance of the saints; and at once words 
of meek and patient acquiescence escaped his lips. 

" Exhausted nature at length gave way. On the last 
occasion when I was permitted to offer a brief prayer at 
his bedside, his last words to me were that he had hope 
only in Christ, and that the prayer which I had offered 
for his pardoning love and his sanctifying grace, included 
every thing which the dying need. On the evening pre- 
vious to his departure, sitting for an hour in silence by his 
side, I could notbutrealize, when I heard him, in the slight 
wanderings of his mind to other days, and other scenes, 
murmuring the words, 'My mother! Mother! Mother!^ 
and saying, ' My dear wife !'' as if she were present; and 
frequently uttering aloud, as if in response to some silent 
Litany of the soul, the simple prayer, ' Lord have mercy 
upon me.' I could not but realize then, and rejoice to 
think how near was the blessed reunion of his weary 
heart with the loved dead and with her — Our dear Lord 
gently smooth her passage to the tomb ! — who must soon 
follow him to his rest, whose spirits even then seemed to 
visit and to cheer his memory and his hope. Gently he 
breathed his soul away into the spirit world. 

' How blest the righteous when they die ! 
When holy souls retire to rest, 
How mildly beams the closing eye ! 

How gently heaves the expiring breast ! 
32 




;•> iUl]l"(J C\<\IJ. 






' So fades the suiuiner cloud away ; 

So .sinks the gale when storms arc o"er ; 
So gently shuts the eye of day ; 
So dies the wave upon the shore!' 

" Be it ours to follow him in tlic same humble and sub- 
missive faith to Heaven. Could he speak to us the coun- 
sels of his latest human and his present heavenly expe- 
rience, sure I am, that he would not only admonish us to 
cling to the Savior in sickness and in death ; but adjure 
us not to delay to act upon our first convictions, that we 
might give our best powers and fullest influence to God, 
and go to the grave with a hope, unshadowed by the long 
worldliness of the past, or by the films of fear and doubt 
resting over the future. 

" The strong staff is broken, and the beautiful rod is de- 
spoiled of its grace and bloom; but, in the light of the 
eternal promises, and by the power of Christ's resurrec- 
tion, wc joyfully anticipate the prospect of seeing that 
broken staff erect, and that beautiful rod, clothed with 
celestial grace, and blossoming with undying life and bless- 
edness, in the Paradise of God." 

The ritual of the Episcopal Church, at the burial of the 
dead, closed the solemn service, and the body was removed 
to the rotunda, Avhen the silver plate, covering the glass 
over the face of the corpse, was removed, the President 
and the Cabinet, Senators, Representatives, Diplomatic 
Corps, officers of the Army and Navy, Clergymen and Phy- 
sicians, and all present, drew near, and, amid the most 
impressive silence, took a last view of the features of the 
great and illustrious deceased. 

At the conclusion of the ceremonies, the procession pro- 
ceeded to the railroad depot, iu the following order : 

3 33 




' t)bse(]i|ics of 




The Cliaplains of both Houses of Congress. 
Physicians who attended the deceased. 

Committee of Arrangements. 

Mr. HuNTEE, j Mr. Cooper, 

Mr. Dawson, | Mr. Bright, 

Mr. Jones, of Iowa, Mr. Smith. 



Pall Bearers. 



Mr. Cass. 

Mr. Mangum, 

Mr. Dodge, of Wis. 



w 

5 
o 
o 



Mr. Pratt, 
Mr. Atchison, 
Mr. Bell. 



Committee to attend the remains to Kentucky. 



Mr. UNDERWOOb, 

Mr. Jones, of Tenn. 
Mr. Cass, 



Mr. Fish, 
Mr. Houston, 
Mr. Stockton. 



The Family and Friends of the deceased. 
The Senators and Representatives from the State of Ken- 
tucky, as mourners. 
The Sergeant-at-Arms of the Senate. 
The Senate of the United States, preceded by their 
President _pro tempore, and Secretary. 
The other Officers of the Senate. 
The Sergeant-at-Arms of the House of Representatives. 
The House of Representatives, preceded by their Speaker 

and Clerk. 

The other Officers of the House of Representatives. 

Judges of the United States. 

Officers of the Executive Departments. 

Officers of the Army and Navy. 
a4 



I 



w 




' 1+^0 I'll 1 1;|(|. 



The Mayor and Corporation of Washington, and of other 

Cities. 

Civic Associations. 

Military Companies. 

Citizens and Strangers. 

On the arrival of the corpse at the depot, it was placed 
in a car appropriately decorated, and confided to the Com- 
mittee appointed to accompany it to Kentucky. The 
funeral cortege soon after arrived, and halted for the 
night at 




^1 a 1 1 i 111 ore, 






where the whole people came out to attest, by fit obser- 
vances, their affection and sorrow. The coffin was placed 
for the night in the Exchange, upon a magnificent ceno- 
taph, erected in the centre of the rotunda, in charge of the 
Independent Greys, as a guard of honor. 

On the following morning the corpse was removed from 
the Exchange to the cars, attended by the Mayor, City 
Council, officers of the Army and Navy, the Independent 
Greys, (guard of honor,) civic associations and the citizens 
of Baltimore, generally. The whole city wore a melan- 
choly aspect; business was generally suspended; the build- 
ings on the streets through which the procession passed, 
and in other parts of the city, were decorated with the 
mournful habiliments of death. The bells tolled and min- 
ute guns were fired during the passage of the procession. 

The body was placed in a car appropriately draped with 

black crape, and the cars, provided for the funeral cortege, 

were similarly decorated.. 

85 





b s c c] i| i eg of 



IHII'lllliiii... 



. At Elktou, Md., the cortege was met l:)y a Committee 
from the^State of Delaware, to whom the Baltimore Com- 
mittee delivered their venerated charge, accompanied with 
a beautiful and appropriate address; which was very feel- 
ingly responded to by the Committee from Delaware. 
When the cars reached 

Mi I 111 ill 9 to II, 

a large civic and military escort was in attendance, and 
the remains and escort, consisting of the Baltimore and 
Washington Committees, were received by the Committee 
of Arrangements appointed by the City Council, and es- 
corted to the City Hall, where a guard of honor was sta- 
tioned, and the plate being removed from the sarcophagus, 
an immense concourse of people, male and female, passed 
through the lines and took a last look at the features of 
the deceased. 

At every station where the cars stopped, they were met 
by thousands, who were anxious to obtain a view of the 
body. Houses were decked with mourning, bells tolled, 
and minute guns fired, as the train passed along. 



0^ 



|IrihIfcl|jHa. 

The cortege arrived at Philadelphia at night, and was 
received at the depot by the corporate authorities, fire- 
men, military and citizens. The Washington Greys acting 
as the guard of honor to the corpse. The firemen carried 
lighted torches, and rockets were fired, during the passage 
of the procession, from the depot to the Hall of Indepen- 
dence. The procession as it moved through the entire 
route to the Hall of Independence, was grand, solemn and 

33 



rmnu 



ifciii-iiei^y. 



imposing beyond any thing of the kind that has evei^taken 
place in that city. Tlic whole ])oi)ulation appeared to he 
gathered on the line of march, and a deep, reverent, elo- 
quent silence, like the silence of death itself, pervaded the 
mighty multitude; above it all, rendered more audible and 
impressive by the contrast, was heard the slow, measured 
tread of the long funeral train, the tolling bells, the boom- 
ing- minute gun, and the mournful roll of the muffled drum. 

The city authorities had made every preparation for the 
reception of the remains. The hall was heavily hung with 
black cloth, and the square was brilliantly illuminated. 

The scene in the venerable hall was one which pen could 
not describe. The hour was midnight. The body was sur- 
rendered, in a feeling speech, by the Chief Marshal, Major 
Fritz, into the keeping of the city authorities. The chair- 
man of the Committee of Arrangements, Mr. Wetherill, 
was so overcome by his feelings, that he could not reply. 

As the spectators passed around the bier, and took a 
last look at the coffin, then encircled in a wreath of green 
and rare flowers, the silence of death pervaded the room. 
Tears were freely shed, and the deepest sorrow was de- 
picted on every countenance. 

At an early hour on Saturday morning, the doors of the 
hall were thrown open, and the people, to the number of 
thousands, of both sexes, and of all ages, were admitted to 
take a last look of the magnificent coffin. The face of the 
corpse was not exposed, as the effect of the light on it, in 
Baltimore, produced such a marked change, as to show the 
necessity of the utmost caution, in order to preserve the 

37 



• 




rm^n 



0bsc(^i|ies of 




lineaments of the great man perfect, for the gratification 
of his family and nearest friends, when the body shall 
reach its final resting-place in Kentucky. 

The corpse was placed in the hearse and conveyed to 
the steamer Trenton, followed by the several committees, 
and the marshals of the obsequies. The band played a 
farewell dirge, and the Washington Greys gave the parting 
salute. The steamer was heavily draped in black, and her 
bell tolled in mournful harmony with the dirge-like toll of 
the bells of the city. At nine o'clock the boat moved off. 
A large throng of spectators stood gazing sadly after her 
until she was lost to view on the river. 

The Committee of Councils delivered the corpse into the 
custody of the officers and Committee of Congress, charged 
with the duty of conveying it to Ashland. A large num- 
ber of citizens accompanied the remains to Tacony; a num- 
ber also came on to 

Trenton. 

The remains reached Trenton shortly after 10 o'clock. 
Their arrival was announced by the firing of minute guns 
by a company of artillery, and an immense concourse, which 
had collected, uncovered as the train approached. The 
church bells were also tolled, and all the buildings in the 
vicinity of the depot were appropriately draped. 

Jtt |riiud0ii, 

There was a very general suspension of Ijusiness, and over 
the railroad an immense arch was erected, and draped in 

38 








fi'^HtU^ 




BilTTj'TTT 


tin,. ,1' 



mourning, with mottoes expressive of the general grief at 
the nation's loss. The places of business and dwellings in 
the vicinity were also in mourning. 

Similar demonstrations of sympathy and respect were 
exhibited at New Brunswick, Elizabethtown, Rahway, 
and, indeed, at all places along the route. 

Jit UrlDiuii, 

The remains were met by the Committee of Jersey City, 
and a large body of military, while the firing of minute 
guns and the tolling of bells betokened the general sorrow. 
The stores and places of business were mostly closed, and 
all the principal buildings were decked in mourning. 



THURSDAY, JULY 1. 

The Joint Committee held its first official meeting this 
day, and immediately entered upon the performance of the 
duties assigned them. It being then understood that the 
mortal remains of the revered Henry Clay would be 
brought to this city, en route for Kentucky. Ample mea- 
sures were promptly adopted to complete all the arrano-e- 
ments designed for the reception of the body, characteris- 
tically appropriate of the occasion, and in a manner ade- 
quate to his merits and exalted station. A delegation from 
the Clay Festival Association, waited upon the Committee, 
and presented the following communication : 




" The undersigned, duly constituted a committee, with 
power to act in behalf of the ' Clay Festival Association, 

39 




([>NseiU|ies of 



nfnniiMi. 



respectfully represent that they have been organized as an 
association, the past -seven years, having for its object the 
celebration of the birthday of Henry Clay, by an annual 
festival. That many of them were closely allied to him 
by ties of personal friendship and unity; and that all this 
has been done free from any political considerations. 

" That we now, in common with our fellow-citizens, mourn 
his loss, but, that from the very nature of our organiza- 
tion, it is manifest that the ties which connect us with the 
illustrious dead, is of a strong and aflFectionate character. 

" We therefore respectfully request of your honorable 
committee, that we may be permitted to occupy such posi- 
tion and take such action, that would seem to be not only 
appropriate, but our proper right. 

" First. We respectfully ask of you to be permitted to do 
service in attendance upon the body of the deceased during 
its stay in New York . 

" Second. We ask that we may be permitted to act as 
mourners upon the occasion of the procession. 



M. R. BREWER, 

President Clay Festival Association. 



Kenneth G. W kite, \ j^. ^ • 7 - 

T T^ T^,, '> Vice Fresidents 

JosiAH P. Knapp, ^ 



BENJ. DRAKE, 

Chairman Executive Committee. 




J AS, L. Berrien, Sec'ij. 



Jos. M. Price, 
Wm. S. Duke, 
Horatio Reed, 
George P, Woodward, 



H. N, Loudon, 
David Webb, 
John T. Barnard, 
A. W. Rogers." 



40 



ilci)i-il t^hlj. 



FRIDAY, JULY 2. 

A telegraphic despatch was received from the IIoii. 
Joseph R. Underwood, (from Baltimore.) stating that the 
body of Mr. Clay would arrive in this city on Saturday 
afternoon. 

Whereupon, Aldermen Brisley, Bard, and Assistant 
Aldermen Barker, Wright and McGown, were appointed 
a Committee to proceed to Philadelphia, to confer with 
the delegation having charge of the body. Delegations 
from the Clay Festival Association and Whig General 
Committees were invited to accompany the Committee. 

Company D, Washington Greys, Capt. James Little, 
was selected as a guard of honor, on the reception of the 
body ; also, during its stay in the city, and at its departure. 

Letters of invitation were issued to the Mayor, Governor, 
Lieut. Governor and the Heads of Departments of the 
State, Common Council, Heads of Departments, Judges 
of Courts, officers of the Army and Navy, members of 
Congress, State Senate and Assembly, Foreign Ministers 
and Consuls, Society of Cincinnati, Collector, Naval Offi- 
cer and Surveyor of the Port, and other civil officers of 
the United States, «tc., &c. 



iS= 



The following notice was issued, and ordered to be pub- 
lished in the newspapers of the day : 

" The Special Committee of the Common Council of the 
city of New York, appointed to make suitable arrange- 
ments to pay respect to the Hon. Hexry Clay, deceased, 
respectfully announce to their fellow-citizens, that intelli- 
gence has been received that the remains may be expected 
to arrive in this city this day, Saturday, .3d inst., at one 
O'clock, P. M., at the Battery, from whence they will lie 

41 




»,.lh»,|.'... ,V.,,BH.I,1„.,.. iA,',«V.im,',M.,VBW5; 



fiTlMMlllIlM 



0b?e(]i|les of 



taken to the City Hall, and there remain until the Con- 
gressional delegation determines to proceed onward. 

" It is requested by the Committee that the persons hav- 
ing charge of the various church bells, will cause them to be 
tolled during the hours of one and two o'clock, p. m. 

" It is also recommended that the shipping in our harbor 
display their flags at half mast, and that proprietors of 
hotels and other public buildings, do likewise. 

" The Committee earnestly request, that from the hour 
above named, until the close of the day, business of every 
kind be suspended in respect to the memory of the deceased. 

" Delegates who will participate in the reception of the 
remains, will take their position in the line on the Battery, 
in the order arranged upon with the Committee of the 
Common Council, as the shortness of time will preclude 
further notice. 

It is designed that the obsequies in honor of the de- 
ceased will take place at some future time, of which due 
notice will be given. 

WILLIAxM H. CORNELL, 
WESLEY SMITH, 
WILLIAM J. BRISLEY, 
WILLIAM M. TWEED, 
JAMES M. BARD, 
S. L. H. WARD, 
JOHN BOYCE, 
RICHARD T. COMPTON, 

Pres't. 
ISAAC O. BARKER, 
THOMAS WOODWARD, 
JOHN J. TAIT, 
WILLIAM ANDERSON, 
WILLIAM H. WRIGHT, 
S. BENSON McGOWN, 
J. H. VALENTINE, 
JONATHAN TROTTER, 

Pres't. 
42 



Committee 
of the 
Board of Aldermen. 



Comm itlee of the 

Board of 

Assistant Aldermen. 




i\ ii 1) r (| f ) ;i (| . 



r"-i:i"."M.. 



On the same day liis Honor the Mayor issued the fol- 
lowing 

f ratlitmittian. 

Mayor's Office, July 2, 1852. 

In respect to the memory of the departed sage and pa- 
triot, Henry Clay, whose remains will reach this city on 
Saturday, the 3d inst., on their route to the West, the 
public offices of the city will be closed, on that day, after 
12 o'clock, M. 

A. C. KINGSLAND, Mayor. 

On Saturday morning, the Committee assembled, pre- 
paratory to proceeding to Jersey City, where they were 
to receive the body. The Committee, accompanied by the 
Mayor, members of the Common Council, City officers, 
Clay Festival Association, United States Government 
officers, Company D, Washington Greys, (guard of honor) 
and a large number of invited guests, proceeded to the 
Battery, and embarked on board the steamer Philadelphia 
for Jersey City. 

Upon the arrival of the train bearing the funeral cor- 
tege, the Hon. Joseph R. Underwood, was introduced to 
Mr. Manners, Mayor of Jersey City, who spoke in be- 
half of the Committee, as follows: 

"Mr. Chairman: — We come, in behalf the people of 
Jersey City, to express the deep sympathy which we all 
feel in the loss of the distinguished statesman, whose re- 
mains you have in charge. He has fallen in the autumn 
of life, laden with its richest honors. But, ' We come to 
bimj, not to praise him.' We desire to unite with you in 

43 



a 




i.''"!.««B,iifllullll.,ll :L,. i..i.J 

!'' 0bse(]i|ie'S of 



this solemn, mournful procession, and render every service 
in our power, befitting this melancholy occasion, and to 
invite you to remain in our city a sufficient length of time 
to allow its citizens an opportunity of paying their last 
sad tribute of respect to the illustrious dead, whom in life 
they never failed to honor," 

Senator Underwood responded in a brief but chaste 
and feeling address, in which he adverted to the public 
and private worth of the deceased statesman — to which a 
tribute has been paid by the people along the entire route 
from Washington. He also expressed his desire that the 
request for the resting of the remains at Jersey City be 
granted. 

At the arrival of the cars, minute-guns were fired, and 
the bells were tolled. The procession was formed at the 
depot, and marched to the boat. The Jersey City Conti- 
nentals, as a guard of honor, and the officers of the Hudson 
Brigade, accompanied by a band of music, escorted the 
procession of the various committees to the boat. As 
they moved through the streets, the heads of the entire 
mass of spectators were uncovered, and not a voice dis- 
turbed the effect of the measured tramp of the feet, the 
deep, sad music of the funeral march, or the more distant 
tolling bells and booming cannon. Tears fell from many 
eyes. As soon as all were on board the boat Philadelphia, 
she moved off into the stream, and on her way to the 
Battery, Mayor Manners returned the remains to the 
Senatorial Committee, with some appropriate remarks, 
and introduced Ambrose C. Kingsland, Mayor of New 
York, to the Committee, who, in behalf of the City of 
New York Committee, received the charge. During the 




miiin 



passage of the steamer, a very beautifully arranged wreath, 
composed of oak leaves, was presented by Dr. Bp:njamin 
Drake to the Senatorial Committee, with the following- 
address, viz : 

" Gentlemen Senators: — In behalf of the Clay Festival 
Association, I respectfully ask your permission to place 
near the body of our illustrious friend a last but humble, 
though fitting testimonial of our regard and affection. It 
is a CIVIC WREATH, composed not of the laurel, the trium- 
phant gatherings of the battle field, but of the leaves of 
the oak. Such a decoration the Romans of old were wont 
to bestow upon their most meritorious citizens. We loved 
Mr. Clay in life, and his memory is near to us in death. 
We have further to ask that a delegation from' our body, 
may be permitted to attend his honored remains to their 
final resting place, in Kentucky." 

Senator Underwood, in behalf of the Committee of the 
Senate, briefly assented, and stated in reference to the em- 
blem of the oak leaves, that it was in keeping with all that 
had transpired on the route from the Capitol to this city. 

On the arrival of the boat at the wharf, the coffin was 
placed in a splendidly decorated open hearse, drawn by 
eight gray horses, appropriately caparisoned. The pro- 
cession was formed in the following order: 

Sergeants-at-Arms of both Boards. 

The Mayor. 

Presidents of the Boards of Aldermen and Assistants. 

Sergeant-at-Arms of the Senate. 

The Senate Committee. 

The Common Council of New York. 

45 





GUARD OF HOXOR. 



Clay Festival Association, as mourners. 
The Whig General Committee, 
Democratic Whig Young Men's Committee. 
Citizens. 

The procession moved up Broadway to Chatham street, 
up Chatliam street to the east gate of the Park, when they 
entered and rested in front of the City Hall. The body 
was then taken from the hearse and conveyed to the Gov- 
ernor's room, (which had been appropriately trimmed for 
the occasion,) followed by the military and the committees. 
It was then placed upon a beautiful cenotaph; and as soon 
as the sentinels were stationed to guard the coffin, the 
anxious multitude were allowed to walk around the bier, 
and take a last look of that which contained but the dust ol 
Henry Clay. 

As the procession passed along to the City Hall, the 
bells w^ere tolled, minute guns were fired from the Battery, 
the forts and shipping in the harbor. The buildings 
along the line of the procession, and in other parts of the 
city, were dressed in mourning. There was an almost 
entire cessation from business, and a general feeling of 
grief seemed to pervade our whole population. 





The body remained in the Governor's room during the 
night and throughout the next day (Sunday, July 4th, the 
seventy-sixth anniversary of American Independence.) 
The inhabitants of this city, Brooklyn, Williarasburgh, 
Hoboken, Staten Island and other places adjacent to New 
York, availed themselves of ihis opportunity of rendering 
their mite to the general sorrow of the nation, and testify- 
ing their love, admiration and respect of the illustrious 
dead, and to take a final look at the coffin wherein is con- 
fined all that remains of the once great man of the nation ! 
There he lay, on the very spot where, a few years ago, he 
stood proudly erect, affable, and self-possessed— the pleased 
and pleasing recipient of a people's homage— admiring 
women crowding the levee, happy to grasp his hand, and 



^^ 



•17 



0bs:c(]i|i(js of 



wk 



little girls pressing onward to snatch a kiss from his ven- 
erable lips. On that very spot — lifeless and wasting — en- 
cased in iron cerements — there reposed all that remained 
of the great, illustrious, and almost worshipped, Henry 
Clay. What an impressive contrast ! The glorious an- 
niversary of our country's independence was full of the 
manifestations of public grief. The stars and stripes of 
our national banners were darkened with the emblems of 
mourning. The flags at half mast, the tolling bells, the 
minute-gun, the muffled drum, the solemn countenance and 
the mournful tread of the passing spectator, told of a na- 
tion's sorrow for the loss of one of the most illustrious and 
loved in its councils. 

The facilities for admitting visitors were admirably ar- 
ranged. Upwards of one hundred thousand persons visited 
the remains during the evening of Saturday and on Sunday. 
There was a constant procession passing throughout the 
day, and all conducted without the slighest confusion. 
The coffin and floor around the cenotaph, was covered with 
flowers, which the affection of visitors, prompted with feel- 
ings of gratitude, to place near the body as they passed by. 



gc^arturc of tbc |vcmains from |3d\j |)orL 

LEAVING THE CITY HALL. 

At two o'clock, on Monday morning, the remainsi of 
Henry Clay were removed from the Governor's room, 
accompanied by the Committee of Arrangements of the 
Common Council, escorted by Company D, Washington 
Greys, as guard of honor, with the Clay Festival Associa- 
tion, as pall'bearers, to the steamboat Santa Claus, (which 

48 




The scene was solemn and impressive, as the full moon 
lent its rays to lighten the pathway of the funeral proces- 
sion; the slow march, the tolling bell, and the mournful 
roll of the muffled drum added to the general solemnity. 
At the moment when the association and guard of honor 
were drawn up in line, to permit the remains to pass to 
the boat, the band suddenly struck up the air, " Should 
old acquaintance be forgot." The effect cannot be de- 
scribed — there was scarcely a dry eye in the whole assem- 

4 1!) 



Iiil Uii"»l'"! H»li- 



(9b 5 (J tallies of 



riTniiniimii. 



lU 



blage. The steamboat was decorated in a neat and ap- 
propriate manner — the outside being festooned with black 
and white linen, while the flags, which run half mast, 
were trimmed with crape. The ladies' cabin was hung 
with crape, and in the centre was arranged a cenotaph- 
upon which the cofiin was placed, and then covered with 
a heavy black velvet pall. A committee of six of the mili- 
tary and six of the Clay Festival Association, waited as 
guard until the hour arrived for the boat to start. 

The coffin, which rested in the saloon, was covered with 
a magnificent canopy of crape, and on the top were strewn 
flowers of the choicest kind. Near the head was a beau- 
tiful wreath, made from the " immortille " (or life everlast- 
ing flower) brought from Francp, and presented by Mrs. 
Ann S. Stephens, the poetess, with a request that it might 
be placed on the tomb of Henry Clay, in Kentucky. It 
is a bright yellow, while a cross of a dark brown of the 
same flower is worked in it. It was admired by all as a fit 
emblem to the memory of Henry Clay, who will live for- 
ever in the hearts of his countrymen. The civic wreath, 
presented by the Clay Festival Association, and with the 
same request, also adorned the top, while the laurel wreath 
from Philadelphia, and the boquets from Baltimore and 
"Washington were placed around it, and had all maintained 
their fragrance and beauty. 

DEPARTURE FROM NEW YORK. 

At 11 o'clock, a gun was fired, which was the signal for 
starting — the bell commenced tolling, and the boat was 
soon underway, 




^c 



The following is a list of the funeral 



60 



iTTl'.l'.niu 



7fei7i'ijGl^y. 




Mourners. — Thomas H. Clay, son of Mr. Clay; Henry 
Clay, Jr., grandson, Lexington; Hon. Mr. White, Ken- 
tucky; Hon. Mr. Williams, Kentucky; Mrs. Carter. 

Senate Committee. — Hon. J. R. Underwood, Hon. J. C. 
Jones, Hon. R. F. Stockton, Hon. H. Fish, Hon. S. 
Houston, Hon. L. Cass. 

Robert Beals, Sergeant-at-Arms, U. S. Senate; R. P. 
Anderson, Assistant do. 

Committee in cliargc of the coffin. 

Committee of the Clay Festival Association, to escort 
the remains to Lexington. 

Common Council of New York. 

Company D, Washington Greys. 

Clay Festival Association. 

Delegations from the General Committees. 

Invited Guests. 



I 



passage up the river. 

The bell of the steamer was kept constantly tolling, and 
as we passed the steamboats upon the river, bound for 
New York, they stopped for a few moments, lowered their 
flags at half mast, minute-guns were exchanged, and they 
commenced tolling their bells. At all the landings we 
passed, similar demonstrations were shown. As weneared 
West Point, the booming cannon reverberated from hill to 
hill. Cozzens' Hotel immediately lowered the American 
flag, and as we passed West Point a body of the cadets were 
drawn up in line, and stood on the embankment, with heads 
uncovered. A national salute was fired from the boat, 
while the band on the boat played a beautiful funeral dirge. 

51 




At Newburgh, where the boat arrived soon after three 
o'clock, and where there was a grand celebration, the 
cortege was honored with a national salute of thirteen 
guns, fired one each minute. The boat was detained here 
some twenty minutes, during which time the citizens were 
allowed to pass on board and view the coffin. The great- 
est feeling was manifested, and the flags that had been 
raised to celebrate our country's national day, were low- 
ered to half mast, as a token of respect for the memory of 
the deceased. The church bells were tolled as the boat 
left the wharf, and minute-guns were fired. 

PouGHKEEPSiE. — As wc passcd the village of Pough- 
keepsie, crowds had assembled on the adjoining hills and 
docks. The flags were at half mast, and the people stood 
with heads uncovered. A small boat came out from the 
shore, and threw on- board a beautiful boquet, to which 
was attached a note, which read as follows : 

" The Ladies of Poughkeepsie in memory of Henry Clay." 

Hyde Park. — Here the people assembled on the wharf 
in large numbers, and stood with heads uncovered as the 
boat pas^:ed; a salute was fired from the shore, and the 
American flag, trimmed with crape, floated at half mast. 

Kingston and Rhinebeck. — The bells were tollins: as 
we passed by these two places, minute-guns were fired, and 
every token of the deepest sympathy manifested. 

As we passed the residence of General De Peyster, at 
Tivoli, we noticed a portion of his regiment drawn up in 
line, and when the boat was directly opposite, they fired 
a volley, as if firing over the grave of a comrade. 

52 




I' m:i''.|"h 



tfCDl'ljCUl), 



The grounds were tastefully triuimed in mourning, and 
from the boat presented a beautiful appearance. 

The " Livingston " places were also decorated in mourn- 
ing, and had guns stationed on prominent points, firing 
salutes. 

Upper and Lower Red Hook — Bristol and Catskill, 
presented the same tokens of the general grief. 

Hudson. — The docks and Round House Hill were com- 
pletely crowded with people. We noticed thirty-one young 
ladies, dressed in white, with black scarfs thrown across 
their shoulders, and in their rio-ht hands the American flao:, 
trimmed with black crape. The boat stopped her engine 
as we went by — minute-guns were fired and bells tolled. 

From Hudson up to Albany, there was a constant firing 
of cannon from the shore, and every demonstration was 
shown to tell the grief the whole country felt. 

During the day we passed the steamboats North Amer- 
ica, Columbia, Armenia and Utica, each one of which stop- 
ped as we went by, lowered their colors and tolled their 
bells. 

The steamboat Baltic, of Albany, having on board the 
Committee of Arrangements, the Whig General Committee, 
a delegation of the Democratic Committee, and one hun- 
dred of the Burgess Corps and citizens, came down the 
river to meet the Santa Claus. The Baltic remained at 
Castleton; and at half past nine o'clock the approach of 
the Santa Claus was announced by the tolling of bells and 
the firing of minute-guns. The Baltic's bell commenced 

53 




^ 

^^" 



!',■' Obseqiiies of 




9iST^-!S^'^''ML 



tolling, and minute-guns were [fired in] response to the 
Santa Claus. 




The Albany Committee of Arrangements having been 
received on board the latter boat by the Committee of the 
New York Common Council, and introduced to the Sena- 
torial Committee, the Baltic led the way to Albany. The 
night was perfectly still, and not a sound was heard upon 
the water but the tolling of the bells on the boats, and 
the booming of the minute-guns, now answered at Albany. 

Upon the arrival of the boats at Albany, the body of Mr. 
Clay was placed in the possession of the Corporate au- 
thorities bv the Chairman of the Committee of Arrano'e- 
meuts, with the following remarks: 

Gentlemen of the Corporation of the City of Al- 
bany : — As the representatives of the city of New York, 
we have a mournful duty to perform. Within a few days 
we were honored with the custody of a relic of inestimable 
value, — we were intrusted with the mortal remains of 
Henry Clay,' the venerated sage — the pure patriot, and 
the distinguished statesman. 

It now becomes our sad office, having, we believe, faith- 
fully performed our trust, to impose upon your honored city 
the same pleasing but melancholy duty that was assigned 
us. Pleasing — because you have within your keeping the 
" last of earth " of one of the most brilliant sons of this 
great and prosperous nation; — melancholy, because, by this 
afflicting dispensation of Divine Providence, our country 
has sustained an irreparable loss. We have been permit- 
ted to drop a sympathetic tear over the body of this great 
and good man, who, though now dead, yet speaketh through 




It e») I'll eijiij, 



]1£;^ 



i 



liis glorious works. His memory is embalmed in the recol- 
lections of a grateful and devoted people, and his precepts 
are indelibly stamped upon their hearts. 

We mourn his loss, not as those who mourn without 
hope ; for although the mortal part of him, whose elo- 
quence, virtue and wisdom is the admiration of the world, 
be dead, still, we sincerely believe his spirit has fled to 
happy regions of eternal bliss, and, like a guardian angel, 
watches over and points us to his precepts and examples. 

Sirs, this valuable relic of the immortal Henry Clay, 
Ave confide to your care, with the assurance that while it 
remains in your keeping, it will be treasured and appre- 
ciated with as high consideration as his life was virtuous 
and patriotic. 

It is now upon its way to its final resting-place, where 
we hope it may peacefully rest until it is awakened by the 
thrilling call from the great trump on the resurrection 
morn. 

The remains were received by Alderman James D. "Was- 
sox, in behalf of the Corporate authorities of Albany, in a 
very touching and eloquent response. 

The body was taken on shore and placed in a splendid 
funeral car, when a procession of military, firemen, and 
citizens generally, speedily formed, notwithstanding the 
lateness of the hour, — eleven o'clock. The public build- 
ings and many of the stores and houses on the line of the 
procession were draped in mourning, and brilliantly illu- 
minated. 

As the procession passed up State street, (the firemen 
bearing torches) the scene was -one of the most impressive 
and remarkable that had occurred since the remains left 

55 





e''KSc'(]llicg of 



Washington. Arriving at the gates of thecapitol, the mil- 
itary opened to the left, and the remains were removed 
from the car and carried into the hall of the capitol. 
The closing- ceremonies occupied until near two o'clock, 
when the doors of the capitol were closed, and the Burgess 
Corps were left in charge, as a guard of honor. 



5 1]) art lire of i\)t |Uni:iin.s from Jilbint^. 




A special train of cars were in readiness to receive the 
corps at half-past eight o'clock. As they passed the Man- 
sion House, Company D, Washington Greys, Capt. James 
Little, of New York city, to whom all honor be given, 
in their devotion to the remains of Mr. Clay, were drawn 
up in line, and paid the usual military honors. The Bur- 
gess Corps accompanied the remains to Buffalo. A large 
crowd of spectators had gathered at the depot, anxious to 
catch a last look of the coffin that contained the remains of 
the illustrious dead. At nine o'clock, precisely, the train, 
consisting of three passenger cars and a locomotive, appro- 
priately trimmed, left the depot. The crowd taking off 
their hats as the cars moved out — the utmost silence was 
preserved, the deepest feeling was manifested. 

Your Committee, after taking leave of the mourners. 
Senate Committee, and others, accompanying the body to 
Kentucky, the authorities and people of Albany, and hav- 
ing, in their humble judgment, performed their duty to the 
honored dead, returned to the boat, which soon after de- 
parted for New York, where they arrived early on the 
following morning. 

56 



niTi'iiiiMh,, 



t(-cnl\(i Giq(j. 



Simultaneous with the proceedings of the Common Coun- 
cil, and the action of your Committee, several of the Civic 
Societies of this city, Members of the Bar, and others, 
held meetings and adopted the following proceedings : 



the society of cincinnati. 

New York, July 2, 1852. 

The Corporation of this city have decided to render ap- 
propriate honors to the memory of the Hon. Henry Clay, 
deceased, who has been so highly distinguished for his pre- 
eminent talents, the purity and disinterestedness of his 
patriotism, and his uniform devotion to the great interests 
of his country, during his long and useful life ; and the 
members of our society, being descendants of those pa- 
triots who fought the battles of the revolution, which 
secured to our beloved country its independence, and the 
power to establish our glorious Union ; and as this dis- 
tinguished patriot has, on all occasions, by his great 
talents, his energy and perseverance, eminently contribu- 
ted to sustain and preserve that Union ; it is, therefore, 
proper that we should unite with our fellow-citizens in 
rendering the highest honors to his memory. The mom- 
l)crs of this society will assemble at the City Hall to-day, 
at the hour designated by the Committee of the Corpora- 
tion, in their advertisement in the papers, for the ceremo- 
nies to take place, for the purpose of joining in the solem- 
nities to be observed on the melancholy occasion. 

By order. 

Gen. ANTHONY LAMB, PresH. 

E. P. Marcellin, Secretary. 

57 





P^^pw^wr 




i'' (!)bse(]nies of 




W 



.M 



Wk 



CLAY FESTIVAL ASSOCIATION.* 



Immediately npou the melancholy tidings of the death 
of Henky Clay reaching this city, the following notice 
was issued to the members of the Association : 

" CliAy Festival Association. — The Great Commoner is no more! 
Henry Clay sleeps with (he departed Patriots of the Jiepublic .'—The 
membci-s of this Association are notified that a meeting will be held at City 
Hotel, corner of Broadway and Howard streets, on this (Wednesday) even- 
ing, June oOth, 1852, at 8 o'clock, to take such action as may be proper in 
paying a just tribute to the memory of Henry Clay. 

M. R. BREWER, President. 



Kenneth G. White, 
Josiah p. Knapp 



"•I 



Vice Presidents. 



Jas.L. Berrien, Secretary. 



A large number responded to the call, when M. R. 
Brewer, Esq., the President, addressed the Association, 
alluding, in a very pathetic and eloquent manner, to the 
great and irreparable loss the whole nation had sustained, 
and announced that the object of the present meeting was 
mainly to adopt measures suitable to the occasion, and to 
render a fitting tribute of respect to the memory of the 
great Commoner, Henry Clay. 

Upon motion, it was unanimously resolved, that a com- 
mittee be appointed to prepare resolutions, expressive of 
the sentiments and feelings of the Association. 

It was further resolved that a committee be appointed to 
confer with the public authorities; that a deputation pro- 
ceed to Washington, to meet the remains of Mr. Clay; that 
the room be hung in mourning for the space of six months, 
and that the members wear the usual badge for thirty days. 

* This Association was organized in 1815, for the sole purpose of eoinmeinorat- 
inS the birthday of Henrv Clay; and its annual festivals have always bi^cu 
marked with the highest enthusiasm, indicative of the love and admiration of the 
members for the sage and p;itriot. 

53 




' t+CO)\(| tlilll 



^'"nih 



FKIDAY, JULY 2 




The meeting of the Association, numerously attended, 
met pursuant to adjournment. M. R. Brewer, Esq., in 
the chair, assisted by two Vice Presidents. 

Kenneth G. White, Esq., from the committee appointed 
to draft resolutions, reported the following : 

Resolved, That in the death of Henry Clay, whose pul)- 
lic life was a continued benefit and blessing to the people 
of the United States, this Association has sustained a 
calamity awakening the most poignant feelings of regret, 
and the deepest emotions of sorrow. 

Resolved, That assembling once more in the place where 
we have so often met to rejoice in some fresh triumph of 
his commanding genius, or to do homage to some new dis- 
play of his exalted patriotism ; though it is with subdued 
and saddened feelings we stand here, like bereaved chil- 
dren around the grave of a beloved father; Ave still expe- 
rience a feeling of noble exultation in the recollection that 
his whole life bore testimony to his lofty sentiment, that he 
" Would rather be right than be President." 

Resolved, That while the nation mourns the loss of her 
purest patriot, her most gifted statesman, her wisest sao-e, 
and her first citizen, it is ours to sorrow over a departed 
father, guide and protector. That while theirs is the grief 
of friendship, ours is the keener sorrow of kindred. 

Resolved, That our affection for the illustrious deceased 
was not the blind attachment of political partizanship, but 
the higher, purer and nobler devotion, inspired by the 
spotless integrity of his character, his lofty and disinter- 
ested patriotism, his enlightened statesmanship, and his 
imperishable devotion to the interests and the honor of 





.IL I '.' .M 



'ii' 0bsC'(]i|ies of 



nnniiiT^r- 




the country, of wliicli he was the most distinguished orna- 
ment. 

Resolved, That while with sorrowing hearts and trem- 
bling hands we record the loss sustained by ourselves, by 
the country, and by mankind, still it is not without holy 
joy and consolation that we look back to the sublime ex- 
ample of his virtues, and the unclouded purity of his fame. 
In these, a priceless inheritance descends to future ages 
from his life; and his death bequeaths a still richer legacy, 
as illustrating, in one of the greatest of our race, the divine 
truth, that " this corruptible shall put on incorruption, 
and this mortal put on immortality." Down from the 
heights of heaven, the eloquent voice of the sainted patriot 
and sage comes thrilling to our hearts in the touching lan- 
guage of paternal afl'ection — " May you too die the 
DEATH OF THE EiGHTEOUS," and readily, heartily and sol- 
emnly do we respond — " May our end be like his !" 

Resolved, That we tender to the relations and family of 
the deceased our heart-felt sympathies m this heavy afflic- 
tion, and that we mourn and sorrow with them in a com- 
mon bereavement. 

Resolved, That the rooms of our Association be hung in 
mourning for six months, and that the individual members 
wear the usual badge for thirty days. 

Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be furnished 
to his family, signed by the members of the Association. 

The resolutions were seconded by Erastus Brooks, Esq., 
as follows : 

" Mr. Chairman : — I cannot suffer the question to be put 
upon the resolutions which have been read, without the ut- 
terance of one word from some member of this Association 

60 



iliUUiUu. 



in their behalf. I know how idle for the dead are our 
words of praise and our tears of sorrow; but among the 
survivors of the dead the heart finds relief in contemplat- 
ing the greatness and in reciting the virtues of those whose 
presence on earth we are not permitted to recall. Our 
great political father, the friend of our youth and of our 
mature years, is dead ! The wise counselor of the gov- 
ernment, through more than forty years of public service, 
is xo MORE ! The constant and consistent advocate of con- 
stitutional liberty, the peace-maker of the country, abroad 
and at home — the defender of the freedom of the oppressed 
in the old world and the new, now sleeps the sleep of death. 
He rests from his labors; and, at peace with God and man, 
his spirit reposes in the blissful quiet of that celestial par- 
adise toward which all his entire heart, and all his hopes 
finally aspired. 

" The funeral procession of Henry Clay is now march- 
ing from the city of Washington, where the great statesman 
died, and where he rendered so many eventful services to 
his country, to the destined repose of the grave in his own 
Kentucky. His body, surrounded by the President of the 
United States, and cabinet ministers, by statesmen of all 
parties, by the representatives of the army and uav}-, by 
senators and representatives in congress, by foreign am- 
bassadors, and by the most distinguished men of the earth, 
has been mantled and coffined in the Senate chamber, 
which he adorned by his presence and immortalized by his 
genius. The light of heaven has for the last time looked 
down through the dome of the capitol, the corner-stone of 
which was laid by George Washington, upon the remains 
of him, who sought, by word and deed, through all his life, 
to illustrate and defend the principles of the Father of his 

61 





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(9bsi:.(]i|iiJ$ of 



LamiuL. 



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Country. His seat is vacant, and no more shall we there 
behold his majestic form, or hear the music of that voice 
which charmed- all our ears, and made captive all our 
hearts. 

" The applause of listening senates to command ; 
Tlie threats of pain and ruin to despise; 
To scatter jilenty o'er a smiling land, 

And read his history in a nation's eyes." 

was the ambition of Henry Clay. 

"But, Mr. Chairman, I will not now add to the recital of 
his virtues. I read with satisfaction, sanctified by the ca- 
lamity which we could not control, of the thousands and 
tens of thousands who with full hearts and streaming eyes 
are this evening doing homage to the memory of the dead. 
To night his body rests on its pilgrimage to the tomb, sur- 
rounded by guards of honor, composed of citizens, senators 
and soldiers, in the city of Philadelphia, within the Hall 
of Independence — a fitting resting place for the remains of 
the greatest American of the nineteenth century, as Wash- 
ington was of that age which gave freedom to the people 
and a ccmstitution to the government. 

" Mr. Chairman : — The funeral train, with all its sad at- 
tendants, will be here to-morrow. We shall not see 
Henry Clay as when last he was among us, surrounded 
by the beauty and gayety of the ball-room, the genial at- 
tractions of the festive board, and with eyes beaming with 
joy as they gazed upon one alike loved, honored and ad- 
mired. We behold, in contrast now the curtain of death, 
rising before us. The long living idol of our hearts is 
before us, voiceless as death, and inanimate as the grave. 
The sweet sounds of a past welcome which thrilled all 
hearts, and the glad strains of past merriment which stirred 

62 




the blood within our veins to quicker motion, and a new- 
life, has changed to the solemn dirge, the deep tolling bell, 
and the minute gun. All that we see and hear reminds us 
of a Toid never on earth to be filled. But let us thank 
God that though men die, our love, our affections, and our 
remembrances of their virtues, live. The summer shall 
pass, and the fresh green leaves around us fade away with 
the decay of nature, as the autumn and winter of the 
year shall, like kindred drops, mingle their days together; 
but in all seasons, may the life and death, the principles 
and the example of Hexry Clay bloom, as in perpetual 
youth, in the hearts of all true patriots and good men." 

The meeting was also impressively and feelingly ad- 
dressed by Hon. Willis Hall and others. 

The resolutions were unanimously adopted, ordered to 
be engrossed on parchment, and enclosed in a suitable case, 
to be transmitted to the family of the deceased. 

These resolutions were engrossed, and have been enclo- 
sed in a case, of which the following is an illustration : 

The case is a column, designed and executed by 
Mr. John Most, emblematic of the position of 
Hexry Clay, in the history of his country — a 
" Pillar of the State." The shaft is of beau- 
tiful ebony, in token of mourning ; the base and 
capital are of ivory, elaborately carved with the 
leaves of the oak and acorns. The ornaments 
are silver bands, embossed also with the leaves 
of the oak. The capital is removable, and in 
the hollow of the column is deposited the scroll 
containing the resolutions, signed by the indi- 
vidual members of the Association. 

63 






^^^ 



I' 



^ 



IfiTniTmiiin, 



(!)b3e()qi^S of 






'^''::^ 



Dr. Drake, the chairman of the Executive Committee, 
reported that the Joint Committee of Arrangements of the 
Honorable Common Council, had kindly allotted to the 
Association, the position as chief mourners of the illustri- 
ous dead, upon the reception of his remains in this city, 
and that suitable badges would be provided for the occa- 
sion, with a recommendation to the members to appear in 
black clothing. 

The chairman further reported that a civic wreath had 
been prepared, to be placed upon the coffin of our illustri- 
ous and venerated friend. 

It was further recommended that a deputation, consisting 
of seven of the associates, be selected to accompany the 
remains to the final resting place, at Lexington. 

All of which, report and recommendation, were unani- 
mously approved, and the following named gentlemen were 
selected as the deputation to accompany the remains. 

Joseph M. Price, 
JosiAH P. Knapp, 
Alfred G. Peckham, 



James R. Wood, 
David Webb, 
Daniel L. Pettee, and 
Nicholas Carroll. 




In accordance with the previous arrangements, the As- 
sociation assembled at the Apollo rooms, on the morning 
of July '3d, 1852; — the members dressed in black, with 
crape upon the left arm — the officers wearing black 
mourning scarfs, and, preceded by their Sergeant-at-Arms, 
marched in procession to Castle Garden, where they had 
been invited by the Honorable Common Council to ac- 
company them in a steamboat, to receive the remains at 
Jersey City. 

64 



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iisaasiE^mM^ 



ifei^i-y Giiiy. 



imaiiiM 



k 



After a sliort detention at Jersey City the corpse ar- 
rived, and was received on board of the boat, the Associa- 
tion having formed on each side of the entrance. The bier 
was carried througli, escorted by the military of Jersey 
City, and finally committed to the charge of the authorities 
of New York, in an eloquent address of Senator Under- 
wood, which was appropriately responded to by his Honor 
A. C. KiNGSLAND, Mayor of the city of New York. 

Upon the arrival of the remains at Castle Garden, the 
Association formed, accompanied by the near relatives and 
neighbors of Mr. Clay, immediately behind the hearse, and 
followed the remains to the Governor's room. City Hall. 

After having divided themselves into committees of six, 
they remained constantly in attendance, night and day, at 
the room in which was deposited all that was mortal of the 
great commoner. 

In accordance with the previous arrangement, tliat the 
remains should be removed on the morning of the 5th — the 
celebration of the national anniversary occurring on that 
day — the whole Association remained in attendance at the 
City Hall, for the purpose of accompanying the corpse to 
the boat; and at two o'clock of that morning they formed 
in procession upon each side of the bier, in the capacity of 
pall-bearers, with the Washington Greys as a guard of 
honor, and followed by the Common Council as mourners; 
they proceeded to the steamboat; and having placed [a 
committee to remain with the body, they again marched 
to the Hall, politely escorted by the same company. 

They then adjourned to assemble again on board of the 
boat, when a large deputation, together with the deputa- 
tion appointed to proceed to Kentucky, accompanied the 
remains to the capitol at Albany. 

5 65 





;!;.'' 0b?iJ(]i|ies of 

ilTlilTiri;ih, 




PSOCEEDINGS IN THE LAV/ COUETS. 
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT. 

James E. Whiting, Esq., rose and addressed the court 
as follows : 

" May it please the court, I rise under great embar- 
rassment, to announce to the court, the sad and mourn- 
ful intelligence, which has just reached us, that Henry 
Clay is dead. His spirit has departed * to that bourn 
from whence no traveler returns.' 

" This event, though long expected, has suddenly come 
upon us, and presents to our serious contemplation, the 
subject of death. The public pulse, for a time, will almost 
cease to beat; the busy places of trade and commerce will 
be hushed, and the nation will put on her habiliments of 
mourning. 

"A great man has fallen — gone — gone, full of years, and 
full of honors. His unwearied soul, taxed to its utmost 
powers, was always for his country's honor — his country's 
glory, and the benefit of mankind. His life, his being 
and his actions have been woven in tissues of his country's 
greatness, and the page of history will do him that justice 
which party strife has hitherto measurably denied him. 
Over his remains, to the credit of the nation, all men will 
meet to do him reverence. 

" This is not the time, nor this the place, to enlarge upon 
his character — to speak of its strength or weakness. That 
he was faultless cannot be said; there is none that lives 
and sinneth not— no, not one. That his motives were 
pure, noble, lofty and patriotic, but few will deny. 

" It is not inappropriate to say, that he was ready for his 
departure — that he died as became a man and a Christian, 

C6 




m 



iUni'H Cl;)(|. 



'II'.IHIMH... 



and that lie left behind him the evidence of a good hope of 
an endless immortality. It is hoped, that it may hereafter 
be said of him, ' Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord, 
for their works do follow them.' In respect to his mem- 
ory, therefore, I most respectfully move that this court 
do now adjourn." 

His Honor Judge Judson, in reply said : 

" The announcement of these sad tidings will move every 
American heart to the deepest sorrow. In life, Henry 
Clay was the pride and boast of the American people, and 
now he is no more — his name and great deeds will fill the 
largest page in our history, and no portion of that history 
will ever be read with more interest, or reflect higher 
honor on the country. 

" Henry Clay has been a participator in all the great 
events which have given character and glory to this nation, 
for the last forty years. As a warm-hearted patriot and 
lover of freedom, he had no superior. As a statesman, upon 
the broadest scale, he had but few equals. As an orator, 
he was foremost in the rank, while his sympathies reached 
the oppressed of every nation. 

"This is not an inappropriate place to entertain the 
present motion, for the early theatre of his distinction was 
the Bar. In our national affairs he has left the deep im- 
press of his great mind, and especially, when dangers were 
thickening around us, his giant intellect devised and exe- 
cuted, (with others,) the system of measures which has im- 
parted new strength and perpetuity to our union. 

'•Asa tribute of respect to the memory of such a man, 
it is fit and proper that all business should be suspended in 
this court, and the same is now adjourned." 

(i7 




^* 




h ge('|i|ieg of ' ■: 

i|ii!imiiii.' ~ 



SUPREME COURT — CIRCUIT 




Mr. EvARTS addressed his Honor, and said : 

" May it please tlic court, since the last adjournment of 
the court, the rumor which reached this city yesterday, of 
the death of Henry Clay, has been confirmed by full in- 
telligence of that sad event. 

" I rise, sir, to move that, as a mark of respect to the 
memory of that eminent lawyer and statesman, this court 
do now adjourn. It is impossible to add, by any expres- 
sion of sentiment, to the weight of sorrow which this event 
has brouglit to the hearts of our people throughout the 
land. The name, the character, the principles, the great 
public services, the labors, the fame of Henry Clay, are 
known everywhere; and fully understood and recognized 
by all his countrymen. It is, sir, as a just token of re- 
spect for his eminent character and position that I move 
the adjournment of the court.'' 

His Honor Judge Edwards, in reply, said : 

" Although the event which has been alluded to has been 
for some time expected, it has produced sorrow and gloom 
throughout the community. There is no man among us 
who, for so long a period, has acted so prominent a part in 
th-^ affairs of the nation as Mr. Clay. At the time when 
ho ilr;;t came forward in public life our government was yet 
regarded as an experiment; but at that time the men who 
had carried us through the perils of the Revolution still ex- 
ercised a controlling influence; and it was from the fathers 
of the republic that he received his first lessons of politi- 
cal wisdom. He no sooner appeared in our national coun- 
cils than he became a master-spirit ; and, at an age when 

68 





iUi}i\i! t'^njl. 



most men arc acquiring their political education, lio be- 
came a leader. Upon all the great questions which have 
agitated the country for nearly half a century, his influ- 
ence has been felt and acknowledged; and however others 
may have difl'ered from liim in opinion, no one doulited 
his sincerity; and all admired his earnestness, boldness, 
and ability. He had, pre-eminently, the courage and the 
strength of will which inspire confidence; and upon every 
question, involving our national honor, he was one of the 
noblest of American patriots. Owing to his vigorous con- 
stitution he continued to participate in the active duties of 
life until he had arrived at an age when the powers of 
most men are exhausted. He was fortunate in many of 
the circumstances of his life; and, if such an expression 
may be used on so melancholy an occasion, he was fort.i- 
nate in the time of his death. During the closing period 
of his days he had withdrawn from party politics; and he 
had the dying consolation that his last energies had been 
successfully devoted to the preservation of peace, harmony, 
and union." The court then adjourned. 



SUPREME COURT — SPECIAL TERM. 

Mr. Charles P. Kirkland addressed the court, soon 
after its opening, and said : 

" A great national calamity is just announced to us — 
Hexry Clay is dead! Indeed, more than a national ca- 
lamity, for his loss will be known and lamented in every 
part of the globe, where freedom has a votary, or the lib- 
erty of man a friend or an advocate; and, unless I greatly 
err, a grief as sincere, and a regret as lively and as deep 
will occupy multitudes of foreign hearts as now pervade 




^ 



* 




i'' eH)se(]i|ies of ■'■'I 



|,15&^ 



those of his millions of countrymen. Greece, South Amer- 
ica, Mexico, have lost their earliest friend, the most fear- 
less and eloquent champion of their efforts for emancipa- 
tion; and every man in those lands, and in all other lands, 
in whose bosom beats a single aspiration for freedom, will 
unite with us in earnest sympathy on this occasion. We 
are called to mourn then, not merelv a loss to ourselves, 
but to Christendom; not merely to our institutions, but to 
the cause; not merely of an American statesman, but of a 
world-renowned and a world-admired apostle of liberty. 
No man survives, not even those Avho have been highest in 
official stations or most distinguished in war, whose name 
is more known and more spoken in all lands, to which 
civilization has extended, than his who has just been sum- 
moned from among- us to immortality. 

" In bidding our last farewell to Henry Clay, we take 
our leave of one, who furnished the most beautiful and 
most impressive illustration of the genial workings of our 
wonderful system of government in the bringing out and 
developing the individual man. With no advantages of 
birth, education or fortune, on the contrary, with all the 
depressing influences of obscurity, poverty and lowly ori- 
gin, we see him, under the beneficent operation of republi- 
can institutions, rise rapidly to the zenith of human fame, 
and gather around him, in rich abundance, the glory and 
the honors of the lawyer, the orator and the statesman. 
What a bright example is thus presented to the young men 
of this country, and how are all taught by it, that no ob- 
scurity of birth, no pressure of poverty, no deficiency of 
early education, are here any necessary or legitimate ob- 
struction in the pathway that leads to honor and renown. 

" To the lot of this great man it fell, on at least three oc- 




' ij-cni\(i Ciqij. 



casions, to be tlie means, under Providence, of devising, 
and by liis commanding influence, carrying out, measures 
which saved our hallowed union from apparently impending 
dissolution. It was at these times that the greatness of his 
intellect, the splendor of his eloquence, and, more than all, 
the fervor and sincerity of his patriotism, shone out with 
almost superhuman brightness, and accomplished those be- 
nign results, which, without hyperbole, we may believe 
will extend their influence through ages of time, and will 
be regarded with aftectionate gratitude by long successions 
of generations. 

" But it is not as the patriot, the statesman, the philan- 
thropist, that the immortal deceased would on this occa- 
sion and in this place, receive the solemn tribute of our 
respect ; it is more emphatically in his character as our 
professional brother that we would now pay honor to his 
memory. And if a tribute of respect and veneration can 
ever properly be paid to a departed member of the Ameri- 
can bar by his surviving brethren, there surely can be no 
more appropriate instance than the present. Pre-eminent 
as Mr. Clay was in the particulars to which I have briefly 
alluded, he was no less so as a lawyer. His great attain- 
ments in legal learning, and his remarkable powers of anal- 
ysis, of logical arrangement and deduction, and, indeed, in 
the whole field of legal argumentation, were often exhib- 
ited in the highest judicial tribunal of our countrv, and 
obtained for him a place among the first of the profession. 
He combined with these qualities what seldom co-exists 
with them — the skill and tact of the advocate, and the per- 
suasive eloquence so unusual and so effective in another de- 
partment of our labors. To all this, he added as a crown- 
ing glory that delicate moral sense and elevated integrity, 



i'v lDbsc(]qic3 of 



IH1T')''i:- 



without which the character of no lawyer can be perfect. 
But, if the court please, this is not the occasion for an 
eulogy, and I did not rise to pronounce one. I am aware 
that the few remarks I have made are quite sufficient as 
preliminary to the motion I am about to make. And now, 
as a fitting though slight tribute of respect to the memory 
of Henry Clay, I move that this court do adjourn, and 
that an entry in the minutes accordingly be made. This 
motion and the feelings which dictate it will, I know, have 
the heart-felt acquiescence of the court and of the bar." 

The District Attorney, Mr. N. B. Bluxt, said, that he 
rose to second the motion just addressed to the court. 

" Certainly sir," he added, " on leaving this court yes- 
terday, I did not imagine that I should to-day be called 
upon to participate in the official announcement of the mel- 
ancholy tidings which have reached us. Long anticipated 
as was the event, nevertheless, to me it came with crushing, 
stunning force. 

" Familiar for many years with his public character, en- 
joying his friendship, and for a brief time connected with 
him in immediate personal relation, the emotions which 
crowd upon me almost forbid language. But yesterday, as 
it were, pre-eminent among his compatriots, he stood the 
observed of all observers — to-day, he lies a cold and sense- 
less mass — an empty casket, stripped of its treasure. The 
^ spirit of the great American commoner has fled from its 
earthly tabernacle — the affections which centred in him 
are severed, and we mourn the loss of our benefactor and 
friend. He was truly an impersonation of the American 
republic. From earliest infancy, reared under its insti- 
tutions, he was an emblem of its progress, its power, and 



^-^#i| 



jiCDi'i) 011)1), 



its glory. To liim, as adapted to the country which gave 
liim birth, may well be applied the eulogy pronounced upon 
Canning, "He was an American through and through, 
American in his feelings, American in his aims, American 
in all his policy and projects." As Washington was the 
fatlicrofhis country, Henry Clay will go down to pos- 
terity as its savior. It is fitting and proper that one who 
has so long been identified with the history of our country, 
at home and abroad, whose name and fame are imperisha- 
bly connected with its welfare and prosperity, should re- 
ceive the respect of a grateful people. 

" I can no more at present but second the motion of my 
respected friend." 

His Honor Judge Roosevelt, said, 

" The court very fully concurs in the sentiments expressed 
by the bar, which are, no doubt, the universal sentiments of 
the whole community respecting the illustrious statesman 
who has just departed from among us. He not only was a 
statesman in the common sense of the term, but was a man of 
high, generous impulse, and noble attributes, which, in his 
career, were more marked than in any other instance in 
modern history. He was ambitious, it was true, but it 
was that ambition which, more than its own, sought the 
distinction and glory of his country. There never was 
a man who more enthusiastically entered into the glory of 
the American nation than Henry Clay. Whatever may 
have been his infirmities, they were the necessary inci- 
dents of his virtues. There was in him an ardor — a fer- 
vency of purpose — and a loftiness, which, to the eyes of all 
generous men, veiled his infirmities. He was at once the 
true statesman, and the statesman of truth. He despised 

73 



S^ 



i 




' 0bse(]i!ies of 

f'ili!iniihu. 



rTiHT 



falsehood in all its shapes and all its colors; and though he 
has parted from us, and though his mortal remains have 
been brought low, and are about to be consigned to the 
dust, we may say with the American poet, 

' Truth crushed to earth will rise again.' 

His spirit is now, we have reason to believe, rising on the 
wings of immortality to that realm on whose dominion the 
sun that has risen will never set." The Judge, in conclu- 
sion said, " that in honor of the memory of Henry Clay, 
I direct that the court stand adjourned for the term." 



COMMON PLEAS — FIRST PART. 

Mr. Theo. E. Tomlinson, Corporation Attorney, ad- 
dressing his Honor, said : 

" May it please the court, it is usual, when an eminent 
lawyer dies, for the profession and the court to mark their 
respect on the public records. A distinguished lawyer, 
and enlightened civilian, a noble patriot has fallen. Henry 
Clay is dead ! It is true we have expected his death, but 
it was expected as the sunset, which leaves darkness and 
gloom behind. H is particularly the duty of the tribunals 
of law, and the members of our learned profession, to pay 
a tribute to the great commoner, whose triumphs have 
been purely civic — his laurels were the laurels of peace — 
his triumphs the triumphs of the constitution and the law. 
If partisanship marked any portion of his career, it has 
been lost in the unbounded patriotism that marked his de- 
votion to his whole country; so that we, the sons of this 
great republic, realize that in the loss of Henry Clay, we 
we have lost a father." 

Mr. Tomlinson then proposed the following resolution: 

74 



" Resolved, That tliis court, partaking of the universal sor- 
row which aiTects the nation, under its Lereavemcnt by the 
death of Henry Clay, and feeling that no eulogy can add 
to the glory of the great departed, feel that silence is more 
expressive than panegyric, and do therefore adjourn." 

His Honor Judge Woodruff responded, with much 
feeling, to the address of Mr. Tomlinson, in support of the 
motion — expressing the profound sensibility with which 
the court received the announcement; the sympathy of the 
court with the sentiment of deep grief which pervades the 
nation; the propriety of marking, by appropriate testimo- 
nials, an event which forms an important era in the na- 
tion's history, — a history in which the career of the dis- 
tinguished senator, now deceased, was pre-eminently a 
part; and especially the propriety of pausing in our ordi- 
nary pursuits, to allow the indulgence of the feelings 
awakened by the sad event. With some further expres- 
sions of high admiration and respect for the eminent law- 
yer and statesman whose death was announced, the Judge 
ordered that the Court do now adjourn, and that the reso- 
lution be entered upon the records of the court. 

COMMON PLEAS — SECOND PART. 

Mr. Daniel T. Walden, Jr., said : — 

" May it please the court, for many days past the pub- 
lic journals have given us the melancholy intelligence 
that a great man was rapidly sinking to his hnal rest — 
that he, who during a long life, had fought manfully for 
the rights of his country in her legislative councils — who 
had battled, as the champion for the oppressed of other 
climes, was fading from the scenes of earth, and about to 

75 



wm'MW'' 






meet liis last great enemy — yet have we hoped, and with- 
out a ray of promise, our minds have been warped by our 
feelings, and we would believe that he might yet be spared 
to that country he has so faithfully served. The electric 
messenger of yesterday proclaimed the dread and mourn- 
ful tidintis that disease had done its work — that Heney 
Clay was no more. Yes, in the federal capital, amid the 
scenes of his labors and his triumphs, while still in the liv- 
ery of his country's service, as a senator from the state of 
his adoption, he has closed his eyes on earth, and, 

' To wear a wreath in glory wrought, his spirit sped afar, 
Beyond the soaring wings of thought, the light of moon or star; 
To drink immortal waters, free from every taint of earth, 
Tobreath before the shrine of life, the source whence worlds had birth.' 

" The land is filled with lamentation — grief is in every 
heart, and the dark drapery of sorrow is preparing, as a 
poor expression of our inward woe. It is but fit that we 
should pause in our avocation — rest from our labor, to re- 
spect the memory of one, who, amid his public life, re- 
mained an active, industrious and illustrious member of 
our own profession. I move you, sir, that this court do 
now adjourn." 

His Honor, Judge Ingraham, in reply, after referring 
briefly to the public and private character of Mr. Clay, 
expressed the great regard which he had ever entertained 
for him as a man, a lawyer, and a statesman, and added 
that he was well deserving of every mark of public re- 
spect that could be shown to his memory. That he con- 
curred in the remarks made by the gentleman who moved 
the adjournment, and would, in granting the motion, direct 
that a suitable order should be entered upon the minutes 
of the court. 



1 




1^^ 



!l''ii 



t)-ei)r(f t}li)(|. 



■^^'1^ 



MARINE COURT. 

John H. White, Esq., addressed the court in substance 
as follows : 

" May it please the court, the mournful tidings have 
just reached this city that Henry Clay is no more. That 
eloquent voice, whicli has so often entranced the Senate, 
or held spell-bound the listening throng, is now hushed in 
the silence of death. 

'■ In the fullness of my feelings, it would be presumptions 
in mc on this occasion, to attempt to do justice to his mem- 
ory. I can only sit myself down, as one of a nation of 
mourners, and weep. 

" Henry Clay needs no eulogy at my hands. His mem- 
ory is enshrined in the hearts of the people, and wherever 
liberty has had a germination, whether among the shrines 
of classic Greece, in the vallevs of the Chimborazo, or 
among the sea-girt isles of the Pacific, the name of Clay 
will be fondly reverenced as long as time shall last. 

" In his career, so full of glorious achievements and pa- 
triotic and self-sacrificing devotion to his country, the young 
man may learn a most instructive lesson. Born in obscu- 
rity and poverty, without distinguished parentage; without 
friends, except such as he made for himself ; by his own 
eflbrts and the force of his own mind, he raised himself 
from the humblest position in life to the highest pinnacle 
of renown and honor. He was, in every sense of the word, 
a se^f-made man, and although his early life was beset with 
difficulties and trials, which seemed to other minds insur- 
mountable, yet he rose superior to them all, and for nearly 
half a century, he has shown to the world, that whether in 
the councils of the nation, or filling important diplomatic 



^ 



& h » c i] i| i cs of '■i| 






positions at home or abroad, or cultivating the social en- 
dearments of his quiet home at Ashland, he has always re- 
flected the noblest attributes of man, and sustained in every 
relation of life, the proud position of ' the noblest work of 
God.' During the last forty years, no man has exerted a 
greater influence upon the destinies of this country than 
Mr. Clay. 

" Every page of her history, during that period, is em- 
blazoned with his name, and though in times of party ex- 
citement, the slanderer and libeller have attempted to 
tarnish his fair fame, he has been spared long enough to 
live down all his revilers; and now, all parties, all sects, 
and all creeds will gather around the common altar of 
their country, and bowing themselves to the dust, mourn 
over the irreparable loss the nation has sustained. 

" It is fitting, on this sad occasion, that the tribunals of 
justice should pay proper tribute to his memory and worth; 
it is fitting that we here should, for the time being, forget 
the excitements of the day, and laying aside our business, 
go forth w4th the multitude and weep. 

" I therefore move, as a mark of respect to the memory 
of the illustrious deceased, that this court do now ad- 
journ." 

H. D. Lapaugh, Esq., seconded the motion, with appro- 
priate remarks. 

His Honor Judge Lynch, after a very feeling and elo- 
quent address, ordered an adjournment of the court, and 
that the proceedings be entered upon the minutes. 





idSimniK^'v t 



tfenl\i| Glql|. '' 



MEETING OF THE BAE 




A meeting of the members of the New York Bar was 
held ill relation to the death of the Hon. Henry Clay, in 
the rooms of the Supreme Court. On motion, Chief Jus- 
tice Oakley was called to the Chair, assisted by Judges 
DuER and Campbell. Henry E. Davies and John J. 
TowNSEND were appointed Secretaries. The following 
resolutions were then read and adopted : 

Resolved, That in the death of Henry Clay, we feel, in 
common with our fellow-citizens, the loss of the eloquent 
orator, the eminent jurist, the sagacious statesman, the in- 
corruptible patriot, the ardent advocate of American in- 
terests, and the great representative of human freedom 
throughout the world. 

Resolved, That while we deplore the termination of his 
illustrious career, we rejoice that he has been so long 
spared to fill the measure of his country's glory; that his 
eloquent accents in behalf of freedom struggling against 
oppression are familiar to the children of classic Greece, 
as well as to those of our sister American republics; and 
that in both hemispheres it is a sufficient passport to his 
fellow-citizens to say, I am a countryman of Henry Clay. 

Resolved, That a marble bust of the departed patriot be 
placed in the Law Library, as a durable memorial of our 
esteem, and in proof of the entire compatibility of the 
duties of a statesman and patriot with those of the law- 
yer; and that the members of the New York Bar will 
wear a mourning badge for three months, as a mark of 
their respect for his memory and irreparable loss. 

A committee of three was appointed to carry out the 
last resolution. 

79 



f-^ 




IkW 



(Db.^jqines of 



LllJiiMi.. 



A committee of five was appointed to co-operate with 
the city authorities and civic societies, in making arrange- 
ments to receive the body. 

THOMAS J. OAKLEY, Chairman. 

John J. Towxsend, > ^ . ■ 
HexNry E. Dayies, \ Secretaries. 




baltimore council. 

City Hall, 
Baltimore, 7th July, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — At a joint meeting of the several com- 
mittees, representing the corporation and the citizens of 
Baltimore, appointed in connection with the obsequies of 
the late Henry Clay, convened as above, his Honor the 
Mayor was called to the chair, and George S. Allen ap- 
pointed Secretary. 

On motion of Francis A. Fisher, Esq., a committee 
was appointed to prepare and submit suitable resolutions 
for the consideration of the meeting. Among the resolu- 
tions reported by the committee, were the following, which 
were adopted with unanimity. 

Resolved, That the cordial thanks of this meeting be 
tendered to Messrs. Aldermen Wm. J. Brisley, J. H. Val- 
entine, Wm. H. Wright, and their associate members of 
the committee, for their polite invitation, tendered at Phil- 
adelphia, to accompany them to the city of New York, on 
the late mournful occasion of the transmission of the re- 
mains of Henry Clay to their final resting place. 



;nH»iiaiiw»(,iH»Mi 



tiei)i-yGl^y. 



litHiUli 



Resolved, That although it was found impossible for us 
to accept the invitation, in a body, aswc could have desired, 
we take pleasure in returning our thanks for the kindness 
extended toward our representative, Mr. Smith, feeling 
well assured, that a similar reception must have awaited 
all of us had circumstances allowed us to have participated 
ill the ceremonies at New York. 

In accordance with the action of the meeting, as above 
indicated, we take pleasure in forwarding to you the in- 
closed resolutions. Permit us, at the same time, to say 
to you how highly we appreciate your courtesies on the 
occasion alluded to, and to assure you of the respect with 
which we remain. 

Your obedient servants, 

JNO. M. JEROME, Chairman. 
Geo. S. Allen, Secretary. 

To Aldermen Wm. J. Brisley, Wm. H. Wright, 
J. 11. Valentine, and others, representing the 
New York Common CounciL 



DEMOCRATIC REPUBLICAN GENERAL COMMITTEE. 

At a meeting of the Democratic Republican General 
Committee, specially convened at Tammany Hall, on 
Thursday evening, July 1st, Robert J. Dillon offered the 
following resolution, which was unanimously adopted. 

Resolved, That the Democratic Republican Committee of 
the city of New York, deeply sympathize in the loss which 

6 81 






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imiiTTfriiT7:r~ 



f 



ag^iS^j sj^jw^ Je^ -■ Jji ^sj> -"'-^■^gj.i-.i-'a-r^'' 



tlie republic has suffered in tlie death of our great coun- 
tryman, Henky Clay. His eminent talents, his distin- 
guished services, and his manly courage have won, even 
from his political opponents, the warmest admiration; and 
this Committee feel called upon particularly to express this 
tribute to the memory of Mr. Clay, because he was the 
able and efficient supporter of the compromise measures 
of 1850, and because the principles upon which those mea- 
sures are based are the principles of the democratic party, 
upon which depend their efficiency and duration. 



Jonas B. Phillips, 
Joseph Hilton, 



AUG. SCHELL, Chairman. 



Secretaries. 




YOUNG MEN'S DEMOCRATIC GENEEAL COMMITTEE. 

At a special meeting of the Young Men's Democratic 
General Committee, held at Tammany Hall, July 2d, 
Ulysses D. Fkench offered the following resolutions' 
which were unanimously adopted. 

Resolved, That the Young Men's Democratic General 
Committee of the city of New York, have heard, with 
deep regret, of the death of the great orator, statesman, 
and patriot, Heney Clay. 

Resolved, That his course in the American Senate, side 
by side with the great and good men of our own party, at 
a time when fanaticism and disunion threatened the exist- 
ence of our confederacy, has served to embalm his memory 

82 



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in the hearts of the whole American people. His lame is 
part of the history of his country; it belongs, not to a 
party, l)ut to the republie. 

Resolved, That this Committee will unite with their fel- 
low-citizens in such ceremonies as may be appropriate to 
commemorate his death. 

A communication was received from the Young Men's 
Whig General Committee, inviting this Committee to co- 
operate with them in rendering honor to the illustrious 
deceased; which invitation was duly accepted, and ordered 
to be engrossed on the minutes. 

JOHN WHEELER, Chairman. 

T. B. Glover, ? ,, , . 
T i o I secretaries. 

John A. Smith, ^ 



GENERAL COMMITTEE OF DEMOCRATIC WHIG YCUNG MEN. 

A meeting of this Committee was held at their rooms, 
in the Broadway House, to take into consideration the 
recent afllicting dispensation which had removed the great 
leader of the Whig party from their midst, and to adopt 
measures in regard to his obsequies. 

Erastus Brooks, Esq., Chairman of the Committee of 
Democratic Whig Young Men for the City and County 
of New York, in announcing the death of Henry Clay 
to the members, spoke as follows: 

'^ Gentlemen of the Committee— You have been con- 
vened at an unusual time, and for reasons so obvious in 

8:3 




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THlrjiiiiiiia. 



(9!}gc()iiic3 of 



all that meets your eyes and ears, that it is not necessary 
for me to mention the occasion. Our chieftain is dead. 
At the capital of our country, in the city of Washington, 
amidst the scenes of nearly forty years of labor, in the 
cabinet and in the two houses of congress, the spirit of 
one whom we most dearly loved, and most profoundly 
respected, has taken its flight to the God who gave it. 
He died full of years and full of honors. The sweet music 
of his voice is hushed in the silence of death. His erect 
and commanding form lies prostrate in the narrow con- 
fines of the tomb. The brilliancy of his genius, the logic 
of his mind, the grace of his manners, the physical energy 
directed by a courage that never faltered, and by a will 
that never tired, all have been made captive by death — 
the King of Terrors. But Henry Clay lived a hero, and 
he died a Christian. He rests from his labors, and his 
works do follow him. When he was born, the constitu- 
tion of our country was not adopted. Our independence 
had not even been achieved. He was ushered into the 
world, surrounded by the roar of cannon, the strife of 
revolution, and amidst burning struggles for liberty. His 
life was worthy of such a beginning, and the state of his 
birth honored by such a son. Washington alone was 
moreloved as a patriot. Patrick Henry was more elo- 
quent; Thomas Jefferson was more fortunate, and Madi- 
son and Monroe, Virginians all, attained, in the quiet but 
golden age of the republic, higher places from their 
country. But the mother of states and of statesmen never 
gave ]»irth to one of her children whose life was more 
honored, or whose death is more lamented. He saw in 
his day our country grow, as the spreading forest oak has 
grown from the acorn, from four to twenty-eight millions 



I'' -HcDi-ijC'lpu 



"IMTlr.M. 




of people. The Allcgliaiiics wore tlie boundaries of the 
country in the days of his youth; but they, too, expanded, 
until our American domain has stretched across the Rocky 
Mountains to the golden shores of the Pacific. Even the 
mouth of the Mississippi was not then ours. The sugar 
and cotton lands of Louisiana, and the vine and orano-e 
groves of Florida were the possessions of France and 
Spain; but now, ships from our own bays and broad-armed 
ports ride upon the Western ocean, while those on board 
contemplate and hold communion with the Eastern hem- 
isphere, and all their oriental treasures. All this has 
Ijcen in the life-time of Hexry Clay — and what an exam- 
ple has he left us, as countrymen, as citizens, and as 
friends. 

" We desire, in such an hour as this, not to rob the nation 
of its glory, hj doing homage to him as the mere man of 
a party. But here, in our political home, where we have 
party attachments, warm and enduring as our lives; and 
attachments which were created by our devotion to the prin- 
ciples of Henry Clay, we cannot forego the privileo-e of 
saying that he was our own political father, as he was for 
many, many years, the prophet and patriarch of the Whigs 
of the whole union. He was the father of that great 
American system which protects and honors American 
labor. He was the defender of every American interest — 
agricultural, commercial and social. He was known, all 
over the land, as the great pacificator of the country; and 
in three memorable struggles, when civil war threatened 
the land, under a good Providence, he was the instrument 
of creating harmony from discord, and changing the pas- 
sion of sectional hate, into a sentiment of fraternal love 
and national respect. 

85 




^i^ggw^^ 



'.''' t>'3sei]i|ies of 



IWTii 



" Gentlemen of the Committee — In the grave of Heney 
Clay let us bury all our personal griefs, and become once 
more, in the unity of a true political American faith, a 
band of brothers. Like our honored chief, let us know 
' no north, no south, no east, no west, nothing but our 
country.' By defending his principles, by keeping alive 
his memory in our hearts, we shall learn to practice that 
public duty and that heroic virtue which teaches mankind 
that it is letter, in all our earthly aspirations, to he right than 
even to he successful We shall learn, too, from his life and 
his death, that the greatest political honor and the highest 
public service is not inconsistent with a true Christian 
faith, but that one may prepare himself to die even when 
surrounded by all the temptations and attractions of 
worldly power and applause. 

" The glories of our blood and state 

Are shadows, not substantial things ; 
There is no armor against Fate ; 
Death lays his icy hand on kings ! 
Sceptre and crown 
INIust tumble down, 
And in the dust be equal made 
With the poor ci'ooked scythe and spade. 

***** 

All heads must come 

To the cold tomb. 
Only the actions of the just 
Smell sweet, and blossom in the dust." 

Mr. N. Careoll then submitted the following address 
and resolutions: 



God has removed from earth " the first of men, and the 
first in our hearts." Virginia, from whence sprang " the 
Father of his Country," gave our leader birth. 



Migrating 



86 



„.vtj.:jif^ 



p^ t)-ei)iN) t)lq(|. il' 



OOLiLi 



*rt^V 



in 1707, from tho mother of states, he planted his feet 
upon the soil of her eldest daughter. AVhilc time lasts 
the names of Henry Clay and of IvENTUCfeY will be known 
and renowned; wherever liberty is loved, honor reverenced, 
truth revered, and virtue has its abode. 

For fifty years and upward, he served his whole coun- 
try, with a single eye toward the interests of each and 
every section. Bearing through life a spotless name, he 
outlived detraction and vituperation. 

He devoted all his unequaled energies, during the entire 
period of his career, to advance the honor, the glory, and 
the prosperity of his native land. Wherever the spirit of 
freedom struggled against tyranny or oppression, his soul 
espoused the cause of the suffering; and that matchless 
eloquence, which has awed senates, and with resistless 
force commanded greater results than that of any other 
man known in our history, was ever lifted up in behalf 
of the persecuted of every clime and nation. He never 
turned aside from distress, public or private. He labored 
to lay, wide and deep, the foundations of the union, the 
perpetuity of the constitution, and the majesty as well as 
the sanctity of the laws. He toiled, unwearied, through 
long years, to establish the great and beneficent American 
system. His eagle eye never slept whenever peril threat- 
ened the republic. Thrice he warded from her breast the 
impending danger. Her honor imperiled, his voice sum- 
moned the country, and upheld her during the second war 
of independence. He grasped, with gigantic mind, and 
with abilities and genius, that never succumbed to disaster, 
the duties of a statesman, the bravery of a hero, and the 
wisdom of a sage. 

87 





While he lived, his love"^of country, conquering self, and 
every personal aspiration, led him, again and again, to sac- 
rifice himself, without a wail or a murmur. He counted 
any service to his native land, at whatever cost to him- 
self, as a proud and triumphant gain. 

Looking through our history, we pause beside Wash- 
ington and Henry Clay — these two. 



Resolved, That with a stricken nation, we mourn the 
death of earth's greatest son. 

Resolved, That we no longer can claim him as the property 
of party — elevated by his patriotism, his services, and his 
virtues to the distinction of being " the first citizen of the 
republic," his deathless fame passes to the keeping of 
immortality. 

Resolved, That in this, the hour of our sorrow, from the 
midst of the gloom which such a death inspires, we look 
beyond, and see a country blessed above that of any other 
in the universe — free, prosperous and devoutly thankful 
and happy — and we remember, though many have done 
much toward this end, to Henry Clay is justly allotted 
the fullest meed of having most served, and thrice saved 
his beloved country. 

Resolved, That it belongs to the Democratic Whig Gen- 
eral Committee, and the General Committee of Democratic 
Whig Young Men, to proclaim the truth, that from their 
organization, so long as he was before the people, they 
never knew an hour untrue to Henry Clay. 

Resolved, Mingling our tears with his family and kin- 
dred, we tender to them our heart-felt affection and sym- 
pathy — for our great leader and friend was so endeared 
to each of us, that we, too, felt that we were of his liouse- 

88 





hold, and that whicli affected or concerned liim or his, 
grieved ns alike. 

Resolved, That ^'c Avill cherish his fame and memory — 
his deeds and principles — transmitting them as the most 
precious legacy we can bequeath to our posterity and suc- 
cessors. 

Resolved, That we will drape our rooms in mourning, 
and that the members of the Committees will wear the 
usual badges of mourning for thirty days. 

Resolved, That a joint committee of members be ap- 
pointed to make arrangements for the funeral obsequies of 
our illustrious champion. 

Resolved, That a copy of the preamble, and of these res- 
olutions, be furnished to his family. 

^[r. Daniel Bowly, in seconding the resolutions, re- 
marked — 

" Mr. Chairman: — It has again become our sad office,* as 
the representatives of the Democratic Whig party of this 
city, to give expression to our profound sorrow at the loss, 
not only of one of its most prominent members, but of its 
chiefest column, which Death, with the giant hand of an- 
other Samson, has plucked away. Henry Clay is dead ! 

" Not long ago, Mr. Chairman, the veil of the temple of 
the great Democratic Whig party, mainly reared upon the 
broad, national foundation of the principles successively 
and successfully advocated by Henry Clay, was, by local 
variance and individual rivalry, nearly rent in twain, and 
tottered, even unto its fall. But, by a good Providence in 
the affairs of nations, and a just judgment among men, the 
noble structure still survives, not only the desolating hand 

* In allusion to tlio death ot'DAvm Graii.vvi. 




& b ge(]nieg of 



w 






of faction, but even the loss of him, its chicfcst column, and 
towers unscathed above the base contest of sectional strife. 

" Henry Clay is dead ! yet may we not trust that this, 
our great national affliction, at this time, has, by a wise 
decree of the Ruler of national as of individual events, 
been so ordered that the great void made in the central 
arch of this, our temple, by the death of him whose deeds 
are above panegyric and whose life is above eulogy, may, 
if it cannot be filled, at least be supplied, by one whose 
name the voice of his fellow Whig countrymen has invoked 
to its conservation, until it not only restore, but preserve, 
in all its original proportions, that massive temple, our po- 
litical faith, even unto the realization of that beautiful idea 
of another, its architectural type of material harmony. 

" Henry Clay is dead ! And if, Mr. Chairman, I have 
not been one of thq^e who have staked the existence of a 
great party in the life of a single individual, I have not been 
the less sensible that the history of a great man is the history 
of a nation; and, sir, it needs no language of mine to vin- 
dicate its pages, in anticipation, from the charge of injus- 
tice to the life, the actions, and the virtues of Henry 
Clay." 

The resolutions were then unanimously adopted. 

A delegation from the General Committee was then an- 
nounced, who, through Mr. John H. White, extended an 
invitation to the Young Men's Committee to meet them in 
joint session. 

The invitation was accepted, and the Committee ad- 
journed to the rooms of the General Committee. 

In joint session the above resolutions were again read 
and adopted. 

93 




T?=3E2E: 



i.'' lUoJ'i! t^lj)(|. 



After which, a joint coiuinittee of arrangement?, u])on 
Mr. Clay's obsequies, was appointed, consisting of the 
followino' gentlemen : 



Senior Committee, 
Daniel Ullmaxx, 
Warren Chapman, 
Thomas Carnley, 
KoBT. T. Haws, 
Charles F. Smith, 
Philip J. Monroe, 
John H. White, 
Jas. Kelly, ex-officio. 




Young Men^s Committee, 
Nicholas Carroll, 
Nathan C. Ely, 
George W. Thacher, 
John Ryan, 
S. B. RoMAiNE, Jr., 
James H. Moseman, 
Erastus Brooks, ex-officio. 



JAMES KELLY, 

Chairman Dem. Whig General Committee. 

Wm. Shardlow, ) c, ^ . 
George P. Nelson, \ ^'^^'i^^^^'- • 

ERASTUS BROOKS, 

Chairman Gen. Com. Dem. Whig Young Men. 

Bern L. Budd 
James H. Moseman. 



Secretaries. 



SCOTT CENTKAL COMMITTEE. 

At a meeting of the Scott Central Committee of the 
city of New York, held on the 30th of June, 1852, Mr. A. 
J. Williamson proposed the following resolutions, which 
were unanimously adopted : 

Whereas, By the dispensation of Providence, this great 
nation ha? been called upon to pay the last tribute of re- 

91 




Ob«ijt]i|ic-s of 



spect to the memory of Henry Clay; as American citi- 
zens, and as members of the Whig party, to the triumph of 
whose principles this great and good man devoted the best 
energies of his long and useful life, we feel called upon to 
unite our tears and sympathies with those who mourn his 



death; tlierefore, be it 



Resolved, That we will join our fellow-citizens in any 
public demonstration of respect to the memory of the dis- 
tinguished statesman — the man of his time — the pure pa- 
triot — the matchless orator, and honest philanthropist — 
the great commoner, whose whole life proves the sincerity 
of his noble sentiment: "I would rather be right than be 
President;" and who has so repeatedly proved his devotion 
to his country by his sacrifices and services — whose voice 
never failed to still the storm of sectional fanaticism, and 
allay the spirit of discord, which, from time to time, has 
raised its hydra-head in different portions of the republic; 
and whose wise and far seeing policy has been productive 
of such beneficial results to the whole union. 

Resolved, That as members of the great Whig party, we 
mourn the death of Henry Clay as children do the loss 
of a good and kind father, who has watched over and 
guided the wanderings of our childhood and youth, and 
whose wise councils and patriotic teachings have placed 
us, in manhood, in our present proud position. 

Resolved, That our respect and veneration for the man 
are still further increased as we look back upon the unkind 
and ungenerous treatment which he has so often received, 
without a murmur, so long as he alone was the sufferer 
but who was always prompt to call back to duty all who 
were forgetful to their patriotism or nationality — who was 

92 




always willing to sacrifice himself on the altar of his coun- 
try's good . 

Resolved, That the name of Henry Clay requires no 
eulogium, where freedom has a foothold or patriotism com- 
mands respect. His genius and his talents are familiar as 
household words, wherever the English language is spoken 
or civilization has penetrated. While a nation mourns 
his irreparable loss, generous hearts, over the whole sur- 
face of the globe, Avill unite in paying a tearful tribute to 
his memory. 

Resolved, That we condole with the bereaved family and 
friends of the illustrious deceased, on whom this blow must 
fall, with even greater severity than on the nation in 
whose service his long life has been spent, and that as a 
token of our sympathy for them, and respect to the memory 
of the man, we will wear the usual badge of mourning for 
ninety days, and. that our meeting rooms be decorated in 
a becoming manner for the same period. 

ROBERT T. HAWS, Chairinan. 



W. L. Shardlow, 
A. J. Williamson, 



J. F. Freeborn, } t- /^y • 
G. W. Blunt, ) ^^ce-Chair 

Secretaries. 



men. 



FIRST WARD SCOTT AND GRAHAM ASSOCIATION. 

xVt a regular meeting of this Association, the Hon. J. 
Phillips Phcenix introduced the following resolution, 
which was unanimously adopted : 

Resolved, That this Association has heard, with the dee})- 
est sorrow, the death of the patriot and statesman, Henry 

93 



(9bseOi|ies of 



Wvi 



Clay. For half a century he has been our distinguished 
champion at home and abroad; knowing "no north, no 
south, no east, no west," his gigantic mind has ever been 
devoted to the best interests of his country. It may truly 
be said, " Our country mourns the loss of her noblest 



son. 



JOHN H. WHITE, President. 



John Griffix, } ^ , . 
Jos. A. Gardner, \ ^^^^retaries. 



FIFTH WARD SCOTT AND GRAHAM CLTB. 

At a meeting of this Association, held on ^yeduesday 
evening, June 30th, the following preamble and resolutions 
were unanimously adopted : 

Whereas, It has pleased an all-wise Providence to remove 
from our midst, the sage, patriot and statesman, Henry 
Clay, whose life, for the last fifty years, has been devoted 
to the interests of the country, and whose whole history 
has proved his declaration, " that I would rather be right 
than be President;" therefore. 

Resolved, That we condole with our fellow-citizens, 
throughout our extensive country, for the great loss sus- 
tained in the councils of the nation, in the death of the Sage 
OF Ashland. 

Resolved, That although we deeply deplore the death of 
Henry Clay, we are cheered in the knowledge that he 
long and useful life in the bright hopes of the 
that his example will always be the guide, and 
the aim, of every American. 

JOHN B. FKINK, President. 

GiEB, Secretary. 

•11 





-jtrff'.WMtf.ftlffff? 







FIFTH WARD COMMITTEE. 



At a regular meeting of the Whig Committee of the 
Fifth Ward, hekl July 1st, on motion, the following reso- 
lutions were unanimously adopted : 

Whereas, This Committee has received intelligence of 
the death of Henry Clay, and whereas, the members of 
this Committee have long cherished the most profound 
feelings of respect and love for that great patriot, and 
deem his death a calamity falling heavily upon themselves, 
their party, and their country ; therefore, be it unanimously 

Resolved, That the members of this Committee deeply 
deplore the death of Henry Clay, and while trusting the 
inscrutable wisdom of Divine Providence, and bowing with 
submission to His solemn and irrevocable decree, they re- 
gard the death of that departed patriot as one of the greatest 
national misfortunes that could have fallen upon the Amer- 
ican people. 

Resolved, That although death may have ended his coun- 
sels, his labors and his virtues, the feelings of the members 
of this Committee remain unaltered and unalterable; and 
that they, in common with their countrymen, will ever 
reverence Henry Clay as the embodiment of all that was 
noble and patriotic. 

Resolved, That the members of this Committee, as a 
tribute of respect, wear the usual badge of mourning for 
thirty days. 

THOMAS E. SMITH, Chairman. 
Wm. H. Canniff, Secretary. 




95 




e'bscqqieg of 



TENTH WARD LUNDY'S LANE CLUB. 

At a regular meeting of the Tenth Ward Lundy's Lane 
Clubj held on Thursday evening, July 1st, the following 
preamble and resolutions were unanimously adopted : 

Whereas, This Club has heard with profound sorrow the 
melancholy tidings that America's noblest son has fallen — 
that he, who was almost the idol of the Whig party — who, 
from early manhood to the grave, devoted his talents and 
his energies to the advancement and preservation of the 
great interests of his country — whose love of liberty led 
him to labor for its establishment in the southern repub- 
lics as well as on the classic soil of Greece, and who was 
at all times willing to sacrifice himself for that country by 
standing forth as its pacificator in the dark and perilous 
hours of its history; that this man, the statesman, the pa- 
triot and the orator, has fallen; therefore 

Resolved, That in common with all friends of liberty, we 
mourn the loss of its noblest advocate, and as members of 
the Tenth Ward Lundy's Lane Club, we will unite in any 
demonstration which may take place to commemorate the 
death of our late beloved leader. 

Resolved, That the patriotic services of the late senator 
of Kentucky, are recorded upon almost every page of our 
country's history; and when that history ceases to be read, 
or ceases to be known, then, and then only, will be forgot- 
ten the name and fame of Henry Clay. 



ROBT. MACOY, President. 



M. S. Dunham, Secretary. 




TlilETEENTH WARD HIPPEWA CLUB 




n 



'' jNot- itCi^ ij . ' 




xV regular meeting of the Thirteenth Ward Chippewa 
Club Avas held on AVednesday evening, June 30th, when 
the following resolutions were unanimously adopted : 

Resolved, That we have heard with profound regret the 
decease of the pure patriot, the wise statesman, and the 
firm friend of his country, Hon. Henry Clay, and while 
we bow in submission to the dispensation of an overruling 
Providence, which has called him from the scenes of his 
labor, full of honors and of years, and we express the fear 
that we shall never look upon his like again, we cannot 
but hope that his bright example, as a devoted friend to the 
constittuion and the laws, will stimulate his countrymen 
to follow in the path winch he has marked out for them, 
in order to promote the prosperity and happiness of the 
land which he loved to his latest breath. 

Resolved, That this Club and the Whigs of the Thirteenth 
Ward, be requested, (in case of a public demonstration,) to 
meet in Iront of this hall, on the day set apart for the fu- 
neral of Henry Clay, and march in procession under the 
Clay Club banner of this ward. 

AUG. MORAND, President. 

George F. Coachmon, Secretary. 



SIXTEENTH WARD WHIG COMMITTEE. 

At a meeting of the Sixteenth Ward AVhig Committee 
held on Thursday evening, July 1st, the following pream 
ble and resolutions were unanimously adopted : 




07 




CVjsdtuiics of 



Whereas, latelligeuce of a great national calamity — the 
death of that noblest of patriots, the greatest of statesmen, 
the purest of men, Henry Clay — has been received by this 
Committee; therefore, 

Resolved, That while we deeply deplore the loss we 
are called upon to lament, we feel that his example has 
been left inscribed upon our national history, for us to fol- 
low in the exercise of candor, truth, sincerity, forbearance 
and conciliation, one toward another, for the sake of peace, 
concord and harmony, and the success of Whig principles. 

Resolved, That we will unite in any demonstration which 
may be called forth by reason of the nation's bereavement, 
as may be designated by the Common Council of our city. 

WILLIAM CRUSSELL, Chairman. 
H. H. Wheeler, Secretary pro tern. 



f^= 





98 




HlisE&DfflBESS 







NARRATIVE OF EVENTS 



FROM 



ALBANY TO KENTUCKY 



INCLUDING THE 



jFiintrnl lulnnnititn at I^Fxiiigtnii 



BY A DELEGATE FROM THE CLAY FESTIVAL ASSOCIATION. 



The funeral cortege, consisting- of the Senate Commit- 
tee, the deleg^ation of the Clay Festival Association, and 
the family and Kentucky friends of the deceased, as mourn- 
ers, escorted by the corporate authorities of Albany, the 
officers of the railroads, a deputation of citizens, and the 
Burgess Corps, left Albany on Tuesday morning, 6th July, 
at 9 o'clock, in a special train, by the western railroad. 

The funeral car was elegantly and tastefully decorated, 
bearing befitting and touching inscriptions — the whole 
train was heavily hung in deep mourning. 

From the place of leaving the eye met everywhere 
mute evidences of the general feeling. Country seats and 
farm-houses hung out their sable banners. All along the 
road were seen the sad, upturned faces of all ages, sexes, 
and conditions. School-houses, with their pnpils assembled 
in front, reverentially and silently gazing upon " the last 
of earth'' of the leading spirit of the immortal line of 
post-revolutionary patriots. 





E^BB^^ES 



[i'' 0bsc(mie3 of 



W.'KKV.l 



Schenectady. — An imposing spectacle was presented 
to the eje. As the train advanced toward this old repub- 
lican city, their way was through a dense, orderly crowd, 
increasing until we reached the depot,— and here the 
whole population seemed to have congregated. Bells 
were tolling; minute-guns were fired from several stations; 
the road hung across with black cloth: all the buildings, in 
sight, wearing the same sombre hue; the national colors at 
half mast, and bands playing funeral marches. We were 
joined by the Mayor and a deputation of citizens. The 
professors and students of "old Union" were observed 
among the throng — many of them, as well as the old and 
young of the inhabitants, seemed deeply aifected. 

Amsterdam.— The station was heavily draped, as w^ell 
as the American flags, numerously displayed. The sound 
of bells, guns firing, and the gathered people, in sorrowing 
silence, gazing at the sarcophagus, as if they would pene- 
trate the casings and cerements to behold the features of 
the beloved dead. 

Fonda. — The draperies here were very heavy, and but 
faintly expressed the manifest grief of the large crowd, — 
among whom were observed many aged men and women. 
A requiem from the band — the bells tolling, and the boom- 
ing of the cannon, echoing and re-echoing through the hills 
and valleys of that beautiful region. 

Canajoharie. — The uninterrupted scenes of the morn- 
ing repeated. The shadowy folds of colors, clothed in 
crape, and the dark hangings of the adjacent buildings- 
all classes clustered in silent awe, and passing regularly, 
in deep files, the funeral car. 

100 








Little Falls. — The largest number of persons that had 
ever been collected at this place, awaited the arrival of 
the train. The ladies and children — most sincere mourners 
— ^had deputized an eloquent speaker, in their behalf, to 
present bouquets of white flowers — immortelles and ever- 
greens, draped with black, while a wreath, circling pure 
white flowers, was their oifering to the miglity dead. 

Fort Plain, St. Johnsville, Fultonville, Mohawk 
and Herkimer, at the Palatine Bridge, all through the 
valley of the Mohawk, were presented the noblest tributes 
to the virtues, to the greatness, and to their enduring mem- 
ory of the illustrious statesman. A large portion of the 
almost countless masses, gathered at all the stopping places 
through this section, had journeyed from ten to one hun- 
dred miles, by all modes of conveyance, to testify, by their 
presence, that although Henry Clay lived no more on 
earth, his example, his principles, and his public services, 
were immortal. 

Utica. — Several thousands were assembled. A deputa- 
tion of their leading citizens waited on the Senate Com- 
mittee. From this city, as well as from all the principal 
places on the route, the authorities and special delegations 
joined in the honored tribute. The very atmosphere had 
become oppressive. It was laden with the universal woe of 
a stricken land. The eye everywhere rested upon the em- 
blems of national sorrow, or upon the reverential throng 
that had made one immense procession from the bed of a 
Christian hero's death. The ear heard only lamentations; 
the gloomy tones of funeral bells; the dirges of many 
bands; and'stationed cannon, that each nnnute cauglit the 
other's echo. It was, in truth, a l)urdened air, but there 




w 
m 



^ 



,i 



Hijliuniiij 



(!)b?et|i!les of 




■was this sweetness in it, that if envy or jealousy had hin- 
dered his just living reward, at the hands of his country- 
men — he had survived these, and was now bearing, to his 
long home, universal appreciation and affection. The 
whole land bowed their heads before the general loss; 
which would have been awhile averted if prayer could have 
stayed the hand of time — a calamity as vast as the boun- 
daries of the Union he had mainly helped to cement to- 
gether, as the fearless and all-powerful republic. This — 
and his whole life meted out in the service to his country 
— bore testimony, from his grave to heaven, of a nation's 



lasting gratitude for all that he had done and suffered in 
their behalf. 

Rome. — Another delegation was received. Among the 
crowd was a remnant of the most powerful tribe of North 
American Indians; their bearing indicated the deepest 
reverence. Did they remember, in him, the champion who 
thrice sacrificed the electoral vote of a great southern 
state, to his sense of duty, in rescuing the mighty tribe of 
Cherokees in that state, from the wrons: which would other- 
wise have been perpetrated ? 

Syracuse. — The train waited here an hour. At the 
hotel the Senate Committee and the various deputations 
attendant on them, were presented to the authorities 
and to numbers of the citizens. The Albany Burgess 
Corps were here relieved. They are a gallant and re- 
nowned company, who had so far performed most ardu- 
ous duty; files of them passing to either side of the funeral 
car at each stopping place, and by every means in their 
power preserving the decorum and solemnity of the occa- 
sion. 

102 



m 



if 



tfci7l\l! Glpy. 



nniini 




Rochester.— The pressure was very great. Not less 
tlian ten thousand were in and around the depot — besides 
the multitude in the thronged street through which the 
train had to pass. Another military detachment, the cor- 
porate and oilier delegated authorities from this place, as 
^ve\l as from all places beyond, including Buffalo, here 
joined the train. 

Auburn. — The same array of upturned faces — the deep 
silence — the unuttered grief. There was a stern solemnity 
— a deep pondering of the thoughtful, reverential multi- 
tude; the tolling of bells — the minute-guns — the lowered 
flag of the union — the heavy draperies of black. 

Geneva. — Another crowd— a rustic band — cannon — the 
houses dressed in mourning — the honest weeping of their 
inmates, who had loved him well,— American flags bear- 
ing the names of " Clay and Frelinghuysen," that had 
not looked upon the light of day since they had seen ser- 
vice in that memorable conflict of opinion in 1844. As 
the train left the place a woman was seen, overpowered 
with grief, kneeling, and with upstretched hands imploring 
Heaven's blessing upon the final repose of her nation's 
savior. 

Canandaigua. — Again an ardent and devoted throng of 
friends, of all classes and of all parties. A deputation, 
headed by Francis Granger, waited on the Senate Com- 
mittee, and in low tones expressed their sense of the coun- 
try's bereavement. 

Buffalo. — So numerous had been the receptions, so 
manifest the eager, yet respectful anxiety of each place 
along the route — not to be resisted — that the cars would 

103 




Obscfivic^ of 



tarry awhile, it was impossible to make a rapid journey. 
The train was npwarcl of thirteen hours in passing from 
Albany to the City of the Lakes. As they approached 
Buffalo a thousand flashing lights were seen. Her author- 
ities and people, remembering his inestimable national 
services, and his unwearied efforts to improve and make 
secure the navigation of all the great water highways of 
the country, upon the success of which their general and 
individual prosperity mainly depended, had made exten- 
sive preparations for a general demonstration. Their en- 
tire Fire Department, with their torches, apparatus and 
banners — all their citizen soldiery, civic societies, the 
orders of Freemasons, Odd Fellows, and United Amer- 
icans, joined in the ceremonies. The long procession 
moved through the principal streets ; many of the houses 
and all the public buildings appropriately decorated, and 
it was approaching midnight when the remains reached 
the shore, and were placed on a cenotaph on board the 
steamer. Amidst the firing of guns, the tolling of the 
bells of the churches and public buildings, of all the 
steamers and shipping in the harbor, and away from the 
thousands who attended the remains of Henry Clay to 
her shores, the " Buckeye State" bore her holy charge over 
the waters of Lake Erie. 

Lake Erie. — The night was clear — the air and the wa- 
ters were hushed, as those whose duty it had been to sus- 
tain the painful scenes of that trying day of travel through 
the heart of the Empire State, sought repose to be the bet- 
ter able to endure the fatigues yet awaiting them. 

But before these retired to rest, they gathered in silence 
around the cenotaph, upon which their great countryman 
was laid. He slept well on the bosom of the vast lake. 



that had borne him oftentimes in glory and triumph to glad 
and expectant throngs of ardent partisans. It was now- 
carrying him for the last time toward his far off home, — a 
nation's wail, echoing from shore to shore; the grief of the 
universal heart. Upon a bed of countless flowers, with 
wreaths of laurel — of cypress — the ivy and the oak leaf — 
lit up by an hundred lights — he rested — great in life — 
greatest in death. 



OHIO. 

Cleveland. — The wharf was reached at nine o'clock, 
Wednesday morning. Then came his old friends and 
neighbors, the Lexington Committee, and their silent, tear- 
ful greeting. Nearly all of them were men advanced in 
years. AVho can describe the deep grief, the agony with 
which they realized, to quote their own language, that "the 
soul of their city, the sun and centre of their social life, 
had set forever." 

These gave place to the Governor of Ohio, the Cleve- 
land Committee, with deputations from Columbus, Dayton, 
Zenia, Cincinnati, other parts of the state, and from Louis- 
ville. They were received in the main saloon of the 
steamer. The tall and imposing form of Gov. Wood, 
bending with the weight of emotion, approached the Senate 
Committee, and paused, and with broken voice, he ad- 
dressed Judge Underwood. The solemn sight of many 
men gathered there, who had long known the American 
statesman — his dear friends and intimates — his colleagues 
in the Senate, and those who had devoted years of their 
lives to his service — so still they were that their sobbing- 
was distinctly heard. " Sir," said the governor, " in be- 
half of Ohio I greet this sad company. The noble state I 

105 




0')se(mi(j3 of 



liiiniiMiu 




represent was strongly attached to tlie illustrious man, 
whose remains are now about to pass through the midst of 
her people, and Avhicli she desires to receive and pass 
throuo'h her territories, with heart-felt homage and revor- 
ence. Not even Kentucky, whose proud distinction it 
will be to possess his ashes, entertains for the memory of 
this patriot and great American statesman, deeper venera- 
tion — not more ardent affection when living — than Ohio, 
who now, so full of sorrow, receives his noble corse." 

Judge Underwood, in vain, essayed to reply. The elo- 
quence of manly tears, the silent pressure of the hand of 
Gov. Wood, who had affected in like manner all his hear- 
ers, was the most fitting response. Marshaled by this 
honorable escort, the body was placed in a car, appropri- 
ately decorated, provided by the railroad companies, and 
the numerous cortege of the family, mourners, committees 
and authorities, joined the train. Its passage was through 
a dense throng of uncovered heads. Before noon they had 
stopped at various places, and at every one they met as- 
semblages of Ohians, that had journeyed many miles to 
take a last look of one who had always received their sup- 
port. Thrice had the vote of this most important of the 
western states, been given to him. 

Columbus. — The shadows were indicating the approach 
of evening as the train neared the capital. The state and 
city authorities, the military, fire department, orders and 
societies, had been marshaled to receive the dead Clay, and 
these, in numerous procession, carried him through the 
principal streets to the resting place provided for him. 
At an early hour, on Thursday morning, the sad retinue 
left Columbus. The houses throughout the whole city, 

106 






> itei)l\i( Cii|i|. '?' 



^j^i'MmTriiiii., 



^-'^^-^-T' .?=Vi-''r-^ 




were very generally dressed in mourning. From Colum- 
bus to Cincinnati, the assemblages were frequent, besides 
the crowds at the various stations. A deputation, styled 
the Dayton Committee, joined the company. The ap- 
proach to Cincinnati was through a highly cultivated re- 
gion, and everywhere along the route, was exhibited tokens 
of the general feeling. 

Cincinnati. — The committee of this city and the mar- 
shals were presented to the Senate and other committees 
at the depot. Here they received the body, and through 
miles of this beautiful city, the procession moved, passing 
on every side the elegant decorations, upon which had been 
lavished the taste of a munificent people. The procession 
was very beautiful, admirably arranged, and the crowds of 
thousands upon thousands filling the streets, and from every 
window, seemed to utter " God bless you," as the funeral car 
passed them. Innumerable busts and pictures, draped 
with wreaths or covered with crape — transparencies, in- 
scriptions, and mottoes, in every street, spoke to the gazers 
the tribute of the heart from the Queen City of the West to 
her beloved champion. Hundreds of guns were fired from 
many points, answered from the United States military 
depot at Newport — all the bells of the city were tolling, 
and thus heralded, the extended line at length reached the 
steamer Ben. Franklin. Upon a cenotaph in her bow, ele- 
vated aloft, open on all sides to the public view, they de- 
posited the body of Henry Clay. The steamer was near- 
ly covered with mourning. As far as the eye could reach, 
there was a sea of heads upon the levee. Amid these 
solemn funeral voices of chimes, and the echoing cannon, 
the steamer left the shores, — tarried for an instant at Cov- 

107 



#• 






T;i'HfHnhim7TTTAtfiwr>TTT 



f'y 



nii!i!iiiiM 



ti>'igCl]l|ii'S of 




ington, which had also poured out her people, and whose 
houses were very generally dressed in mourning. When 
he had last visited Cincinnati, as many people smote the 
air with a louder noise than artillery, in their countless 
cheers — and now there came in the pauses of the booming 
sound — the deeper, lower tone of lamentation. 

The party that left Cincinnati, consisted of the Senate 
Committee, Sergeant-at-Arms, deputation of the Clay Fes- 
tival Association of the city of New York, joined to the 
Senate Committee, the Dayton Committee, the Young Clay 
Guard of Cincinnati, numbering some one hundred re- 
markably fine looking men, all similarly dressed in funeral 
uniform; the Cleveland and Columbus Committees; author- 
ities of the states and cities through which the body had 
passed; the Louisville and Frankfort deputations, and the 
Special Committee of Arrangements from Lexington. 



m 



THE OHIO RIVER. 

NoETH Bend. — The neglected and already dilapidated 
tomb of the lamented Haerison was eagerly regarded. 
For him the mighty Kentuckian had been ruthlessly thrust 
aside, yet how gallantly and with what utter self-abnega- 
tion did the latter forget his own wrongs in a patriot's 
duties. It was impossible not to draw parallels — not to 
remember the dissimilar careers of these two, and yet, in 
each case, from the bed of a painful death, went up fervent 
prayers for the welfare of their country, and the mainte- 
nance and preservation of the Union and the Constitution. 

Laweencebueg. — The firing of cannon, colors at half 
mast, and the uncovered throng upon the bank of the river, 
these were the reverential tributes of her inhabitants. 

1U3 







I 

',^i 



Vevay. — The same tokens — tlic same gathered crowds; 
and noAv the heavens were putting on like demonstrations 
in deep clouds, with her lightnings and her thunders — 
the sky replying to the earth. The rain soon poured down 
in torrents, and yet each place we neared had turned out 
their people, who silently stood, in many instances un- 
covered, upon either shore, as the steamer passed on her 
way. 



Rising Sun. — Guns were heard for some time before the 
boat came in sight, and the tolling of bells. As the Ben. 
Franklin made the turn that brought her in full view, the 
whole river front of the place was observed to be dressed 
in deep mourning — the national flags trailing. Near the 
shore were observed, standing in a semi-circle, thirty-one 
ladies, dressed in white, with black veils upon their heads, 
and one dressed in deep mourning, each with bouquets 
of flowers — " the Sisterhood of the States"- — mourning their 
loss, and Kentucky clothed in sable, as the nearest suf- 
ferer in the common calamity. The gentlemen were drawn 
up, uncovered, in that pitiless storm, in deep files behind this 
touching group. Looking around, the scene had become 
infectious; the whole escort onboard were moved to tears. 

Carrolton, Madison, West Port. — Each of these places 
paid their tribute. As the sun was setting, the clouds 
broke over the bow of the boat shedding over the cenotaph 
a sea of light, and resting there as a ray of glorious pro- 
mise; while in the rear, spanning the Ohio, was seen a 
rainbow of surpassing beauty. It was painfully still, as 
all on board, gathering either on the hurricane deck, in 
front, or upon the guards at the stern, gazed with deep 
emotion upon these eloquent and sublime omens of nature. 

109 




0bscc|i(lcs of 



niiiiiiiiiiiiii 



The night had advanced, but still the minute-guns took 
up their sentinel duty, and their sound reverberated from 
hill-side to hill-side, awakening in each heart the knowl- 
edge that the Friend of the West was passing by their 
homes to his tomb. 

I.\DIAi\A. 

The boat made the wharf at New Albany, just before 
daylight, on Friday morning. The American flags flapped 
heavily against their stafi's, and dimly seen through the fog 
was Louisville; and the early notes of preparation for the 
approaching solemnities were heard from the same quarter. 

At six o'clock, the steamer Ben. Franklin, having left 
the Indiana side, delivered to the Louisville authorities 
the precious remains, that now, for the first time, touched 
Kentucky ground. 



KENTUCKY. 

Louisville. — The body was removed to the designated 
place, from whence it was afterward more formally re- 
ceived Again the clouds formed, and just at nine o'clock, 
a flash of lightning, vivid and glaring — was followed by 
one crash of thunder as if all the artillery of the skies 
had congregated there. The signal gun for the starting 
of the procession followed this. The dense mass of vapor 
gradually broke away, and the clear sunlight lit up the 
funeral streets, which, for miles through which it passed, 
was one continuous drapery of black. Many of the streets 
were dressed from side to side, and from corner to corner. 
The ladies of Louisville were very generally robed in 

black, and every male citizen wore crape upon the arm. 

no 




v,^ 



!i'> itei)iu| t)lDi) 



m 




There was Lut one expression upon every facc- 
of a people lamenting the death of their father. 

The cortege filed on through the lines of the procession 
to the cars, which were prepared by the railroad com- 
pany, and appropriately decked in mourning. It was with 
extreme difficulty, and then only by the exertion of force, 
that the anxious crowd were induced to fall back from the 
funeral car, while many, with uncovered heads and weep- 
ing eyes, were mutely testifying their abiding regard. 

Through these closed thousands the cars slowly took 
their way. It was the last day of that sad but yet glorious 
journey. He was being borne now through his own people. 
The state that he had brought up from her obscurity to 
the first rank of states, whose name, in connection with 
his, was now immortal, was summoning, from far and near, 
her prosperous inhabitants to join with the multitude then 
journeying, from all parts of her territory, toward his final 
resting place. And they were coming, old, young, and 
middle-aged — the women of Kentucky, whose hearts were 
lifted up for him, because he always loved his country and 
her honor — the children whose first syllables had lisped 
his name, — and that unfortunate race in whose behalf had 
been his first essay in public life, and also among his latest, 
to ameliorate and improve their condition, felt that they 
too had suffered in the bereavement which deprived them 
of their most powerful advocate. 

At every little stopping place we saw preparations for 
the journey, and clusters of all ages, sexes, and colors, and 
invariably the aged and the youth in tears. 

Frankfort. — The route was necessarily slow and te- 
dious. The afternoon was advanced when the train reached 
Frankfort. They stopped in front of the State House, cov- 




t<a 



i' (!^bst'c]ines of 







ered, from tlie basement to the roof, "witli black. The ad- 
joining houses, and every point the eye rested upon, dis- 
played similar decorations. Immediately in front of the 
State House was drawn up a line of remarkable men; 
those who had known him through years of trial, and with 
whitened heads and streaming eyes, they were there to 
render up a life long experience to his fame, to his honor 
and to his inviolable faith and truth. At their head was 
Governor Powell, and the state and civic authorities; and 
beside them the masonic and other orders, and the various 
civic societies, with a multitude from the adjoining country. 

Lexington. — The cortege reached Lexington at sun- 
down. As far as the sight, dimmed with tears, could reach, 
there was one sea of heads. The mission of the Senate 
Committee was ended. Gathered in their car were the 
various deputations — first the sons of Kentucky — her dis- 
tinguished men — who had been, to the great dead, through 
many years of his life, as brothers — then that sad group 
from the far off city of New York, who represented thou- 
sands that bore toward him the aftection of kindred, the 
governor and the authorities of the state. On the hushed 
air broke the tremulous voice of Judge Underwood, the 
surviving colleague of Henry Clay, in the United States 
Senate. 

"Mr. Chairuiau, and gentlemen of the Lexington Com- 
mittee : — Mr. Clay desired to be buried in the ceme- 
tery of your city. I made known his wish to the Senate 
after he was dead. That body, in consideration of the re- 
spect entertained for him, and his long and eminent public 
services, appointed a committee of six senators to attend 
his remains to this place. My relations to Mr. Clay as 

112 



*w 



jsjsansEEEiE 



■iiii'i'iii. 



ifeDi-yGl^y. 



his colleague, and as tlic mover of the resolution, induced 
the President of the Senate to appoint me the cliairman of 
the committee. The other gentlemen comprising the com- 
mittee, are distinguished, all of them, for eminent civil ser- 
vices, each having been the executive head of a state or 
territory, and some of them no less distinguished for bril- 
liant military achievements. I cannot permit this occa- 
sion to pass -without an expression of my gratitude to each 
member of the Senate's Committee. They have, to testify 
their personal respect and appreciation of the character, 
private and public, of Mr. Clay, left their seats in the 
senate, for a time, and honored his remains by conducting 
them to their last resting-place. I am sure that you, gen- 
tlemen of the Lexington Committee, and the people of Ken- 
tucky, will ever bear my associates in grateful remem- 
brance. 

" Our journey, since we left Washington, has been a con- 
tinued procession. Everywhere the people have pressed 
forward to manifest their feelings toward the illustrious' 
dead. Delegations from cities, towns and villages have 
waited on us. The pure and the lovely, the mothers and 
daughters of the land, as we passed, covered the coffin 
with garlands of flowers, and bedewed it with tears. It 
has been no triumphal procession in honor of a living man, 
stimulated by hopes of reward. It has been the voluntary 
tribute of a free and grateful people to the glorious dead. 
AVe liave brought with us, to witness the last sad ceremony, 
a delegation from the Clay Association of the city of New 
York, and delegations from the cities of Cincinnati and 
Dayton, in Ohio. Much as we have seen on our way, it is 
small compared with the great movement of popular sym- 
pathy and admiration which everywhere burst forth in 

8 113 






^^ 



ClLiii 



(9bs!e(]i|»es of 




honor of the departed statesman. The rivulets we have 
witnessed are concentrating; and in their nnion will form 
the ocean tide that shall lave the base of the pyramid of 
Mr. Clay's fame forever. 

" Mr. Chairman, and gentlemen of the Lexington Com- 
mittee, I have but one remaining duty to perform, and that 
is, to deliver to yon, the neighbors and friends of Mr. 
Clay, when living, his dead body for interment. From 
my acquaintance with your characters, and especially with 
your chairman, who was my schoolmate in boyhood, my 
associate in the legislature in early manhood, and after- 
ward a colaborer, for many years, on the bench of the Ap- 
pellate Court, I know that you will do all that duty and 
propriety require, in burying him, whose last great services 
to his country were performed from Christian motives, 
without hopes of office or earthly reward." 

As he closed, the chairman of the Lexington Committee, 
Chief Justice Robertson, sharing the emotions of all pres- 
ent, and himself deeply affected, replied : 

" Senator L^xderwood, Chairman, and Associate Sen- 
ators of the Committee of Conveyance : — Here, your 
long and mournful cortege, at last ends — your melancholy 
mission is now fulfilled — and, this solemn moment, you dis- 
solve forever your official connection with your late distin- 
guished colleague of Kentucky. 

" With mingled emotions of sorrow and of gratitude, we 
receive from your hands, into the arms of his devoted 
state and the bosom of his beloved city, all that now re- 
mains on earth of Henry Clay. Having attained, with 
signal honor, the patriarchal age of seventy-six, and hal- 
lowed his setting sun by the crowning act of his eventful 

114 







SE3J 




drama, a ^Yisc and benevolent Providence has seen fit to 
close his pilgrimage, and to allow him to act — as we trust 
he was prc])arcd to act — a still noLler and better part in 
a purer world, where life is deathless. This was, doubt- 
less, best for him, and, in the inscrutable dispensations of 
a benignant Almighty, best for his country. Still, it is 
but natural that his countrymen, and his neighbors espe- 
cially, should feel and exhibit sorrow at the loss of a citi- 
zen so useful, so eminent, and so loved. And not as his 
associates only, but as Kentuckians and Americans, we, of 
Lexington and Fayette, feel grateful for the unexampled 
manifestations of respect for his memory, to which you 
have so eloquently alluded, as having everywhere graced 
the more than triumphal procession of his dead body home- 
ward from the national capital, where, in the public ser- 
vice, he fell with his armor on and untarnished. We feel, 
Mr. Chairman, especially grateful to yourself and your col- 
leagues here present, for the honor of your kind accompa- 
niment of your precious deposit to its last home. Equally 
divided in your party names, equally the personal friends 
of the deceased, equally sympathizing with a whole nation 
in the Providential bereavement, and all distinguished for 
your public services and the confidence of constituents, — 
you were peculiarly suited to the sacred trust of escorting 
his remains to the spot chosen by himself for their repose. 
Having performed that solemn service in a manner credi- 
table to vourselves and honorable to his memorv, Ken- 
tucky thanks you for your patriotic magnanimity. And 
allow me, as her organ on this valedictory occasion, to ex- 
press for her, as well as for myself and committee, the hope 
that your last days may be far distant, and that, come 
when they may, as they certainly must come, sooner or 

115 









(9 bsc tallies of 



later, to all of you, the death of each of you may deserve 
to be honored by the grateful outpourings of national re- 
spect which signalize the death of our universally lamented 
Clay. 

" Unlike Bueke, he never ' gave up to party what was 
meant for mankind.' His intrepid nationality, his lofty 
patriotism, and his comprehensive philanthropy, illustrated 
by his country's annals for half a century, magnified him 
among statesmen, and endeared him to all classes, and ages, 
and sexes of his countrymen. And, therefore, his name, 
like Washington's, will belong to no party, or section, or 
time. 

" Your kind allusion, Mr. Chairman, to reminiscences of 
our personal associations, is cordially reciprocated — the 
longer we have known, the more we have respected each 
other. Be assured that the duty you have devolved on 
our committee shall be faithfully performed. The body 
you commit to us shall be properly interred in a spot of its 
mother earth, which, as ' the grave of Clay,' will be 
more and more consecrated by time to the afiections of 
mankind. 

" How different, however, would have been the feelings 
of us all, if, instead of the pulseless, speechless, breathless 
Clay, now in cold and solemn silence before us, you had 
brought with you to his family and neighbors, the living 
man, in all the majesty of his transcendent moral power, as 
we once knew and often saw and heard him. ]5ut, with 
becoming resignation, Ave bow to a dispensation which was 
doubtless as wise and beneficent as it was melancholy and 
inevitable. 

" To the accompanying committees from New York, Day- 
ton and Cincinnati, we tender our profound acknowledg- 







llo 



iH-iM)lM| t)l;)(|, 



meiits for Uicir voluntary saerifi-cc of time and comfort to 
honor the obsequies of our illustrious countryman. 

" In this sacred and august presence of the illustrious 
dead, were an eulogistic speech befitting the occasion, it 
could not be made by me. / could not thus speak over the 
dead body of Henry Clay. Kentucky expects not me, nor 
any other of her sons, to speak his eulogy now, if ever. 
She would leave that grateful task to other states and to 
other times. His name needs not our panegyric. The 
carver of his own fortune, the founder of his own name; 
with his own hands he has built his own monument, and 
with his own tongue and his own pen he has stereotyped 
his autobiography. With hopeful trust his maternal com- 
monwealth consigns his fame to the justice of history and 
to the judgment of ages to come. His ashes he bequeathed 
to her, and they will rest in her bosom until the judgment 
day; his fame will descend, as the common heritage of his 
country, to every citizen of that Union, of which he was 
thrice the triumphant champion, and whose genius and 
value are so beautifully illustrated by his model life. 

" But, though we feel assured that his renown will survive 
the ruins of the capitolhe so long and so admirably graced, 
yet Kentucky will rear to his memory a magnificent mau- 
soleum — a votive monument — to mark the spot where his 
relics shall sleep, and to testify to succeeding generations, 
that our republic, however unjust it may too often be to 
living merit, will ever cherish a grateful remembrance of 
the dead patriot, who dedicated his life to his country, and 
with rare ability, heroic firmness, and self-sacrificing con- 
stancy, devoted his talents and his time to the cause of 
Patiiiotism, of Liberty, and of Truth." 







Ffefrrirni--;t7TTff ,!T ff!» H ; , F .. 



Obsccjijies of 1 







At tlie close of this address, the procession was formed, 
led by a cavalcade of horsemen, preceding the hearse, 
which was followed by the Senate Committee, and the dep- 
utation from the Clay Festival Association, in carriages, 
as mourners; the Clay Guard, of Cincinnati; the deputa- 
tion of fourteen, from Dayton, Ohio; the seventy-six, from 
Louisville, and the citizens in the rear — their march being 
under the funeral arches, and through the sombre street — 
lined by the silent multitude — toward that place known 
to every inhabitant of the republic, and throughout the 
civilized world, as the home of the great commoner. 

Who can fittingly speak of the agonized group awaiting, 
at Ashland, the arrival of the dust of him, who had been 
husband, father and the beloved master ? That wife, who 
for fifty-three years and upward, had been his faithful 
partner, — sharer of his triumphs and of his many trials; 
whose saint-like virtues had secured to her the affection 
and veneration of all classes, in the place where she was 
so well knoAvn; herself more than threescore years a so- 
journer on earth, having survived her parents and all 
her daughters, with gallant sons mouldering in the tomb, 
bending beneath the weight of this, her speechless sorrow; 
bowing with years, and broken in health, amid surviving 
children, grandchildren and kindred, and gathering around 
them, the old and young of their servants, awaited there 
the remains of her peerless husband. 

Guided by the many torches, the train moved through 
the grounds, designed and laid out under his supervision. 
It was in truth a solemn — a holy scene. Under the dark 
shadows of the spreading grove, treading on a lawn where 
the wild flower, the myrtle and the laurel were strangely 
mingled, they bore him toward that portal which had last 




K. 




j{&i}\Hj GIjiij. 



^S^' 



seen him depart near tlie close of the preceding year, im- 
pelled again to cross the mountains, and to tread the Halls 
of Council, because there had come to him a rumor of 
threatened resumption of hostilities, against the peace, the 
concord, the happy prosperity of the country and the Union, 
the gods of his earthly idolatry. There the fell destroyer 
smote his lordliest victim. He had left his honored home, 
the owner of a nation's love, and possessed of the esteem 
and respect of all Europe. He was now being borne life- 
less into those halls, and on the air was heard a peoples' 
lamentation, as they mourned the loss of their nearest 
friend and greatest benefactor. 

They gently laid him beneath his roof tree, and in that 
room where he had for half a century received the homage 
of countless thousands, representing all classes and call- 
ings — the gifted and the great of either sex — coming from 
every country, and traveling from all directions, to Lex- 
ington, that they might thus, in person, pay tribute to the 
worth, the genius, the patriotism, and surpassing excellence 
of the private and public character of the illustrious host. 

Beside the bier were gathered his sons, some of his 
gi-andsons, and nephews ; behind these the family servants 
— not forgetting old Aaron and Duke — each of whom were 
the seniors, one by nearly a score of years, of their deceased 
friend and master. 

Slowly and reverentially his honored bearers departed 
from the house of mourning; sad and thoughtful faces 
peered through the gathering darkness, as they sought to 
penetrate the then gloomy looking demesne, of that which 
was to each beholder sacred ground. The memory of 
Ashlaud and of Mount Vernon, will be, to American minds, 
the Meccas of the heart, so long as this Union shall endure. 







cfej 



0bset]i|ies of 



from generation to generation, to the latest posterity. 
xVnd so tliey still slowly departed, looking back until even 
tlie very shadows folded themselves into the night, some 
wearied with deep feeling and trying, touching scenes 
spread over days of fatiguing travel, crowded with events, 
through which they had journeyed, toward this garden of 
" the dark and bloody ground," to lay in the tomb the 
Bayard of their country's fame and honor. 

The Clay Guard, of Cincinnati, solicited the honor of 
watching over his remains — this, the last night before sep- 
ulture. It was granted to them, and so arranged that they 
relieved each other — the alternate hours until daylight. 

In the deep hours of the night — alone with him and her 
God — tlie widoAv knelt beside her husband's corse. For 
that hour it was directed that she should not be disturbed. 
In that hour what other heart knew her thronging memo- 
ries of joys and sorrows, save the spirit of the dead she 
longed to join. In 18-14, when he was the victim of a thou- 
sand schemes to track his way and prevent his election to 
the presidency, she had, on the night that knew his defeat, 
knelt beside his living form, and inclosing him within the 
strong arms of afiection, uttered those words, never to be 
forgotten, "My husband, this ungrateful people can never 
truly appreciate you while living; thank God, they have left 
you in the bosom of your family, and in this, your dear Ash- 
land." Tliey had commenced together the struggles of 
life. Together they had planned their home — together 
they had arranged their grounds, and with their own hands 
had planted the young shoots of what now were the stateh' 
trees, that in the intense stillness of that night, were sough- 
I ing and sighing nature's dirge for their dead owner. Life 
I had opened to them full of the bright hope and promise that 



IIH.. 



ff!ffiBiWffr77T7 



l»k^ 






belong- to youth, energy, and commanding abilities. Slie 
had seen him leap into a dazzling greatness, reflcctino- 
honor and dignity upon his native land, lifting his youno- 
state to the front rank of her compeers, and conferriuo- 
prosperity npon his country and her citizens, while hc<ravc 
stability and permanence to the institutions and laws of 
the land, and cemented together the Union, as he ardently 
desired, prayed for, and labored ceaselessly to accomplish, 
from end to end — from centre to circumference. And he 
bore all these accumulated and thickening honors with 
such dignity, and all his high offices so truly great while in 
their active discharge, and so meekly when away from them, 
and in the midst of his family and friends, that he was there 
always so simple and unaffected, these clung to him with 
intensity beyond description, and hung about his heart, as 
the shield that warded from it all the envenomed arrows 
that through so many years were showered at that mark. 
There was born to them, in this happy home, eleven chil- 
dren — ^six daughters and five sons. Where Avere thev now? 
No daughter survived on whose breast that aged head 
could rest. Their eldest born was worse than dead, livino- 
for many years a confirmed lunatic; and yet another son 
whose sanity is not always reliable; and how deep had been 
their joint sorrow when their accomplished and beautiful 
daughter-in-law, Julia, the wife of their sou Henrv, had 
been prematurely laid in her grave, and then found too 
that there they had buried that son's heart. She saw^ then, 
that son of promise, named after his father, crimsonino- the 
ground of Buena Vista, with his blood. It was but a little 
while before that the aged pair had wept beside the 
honored tomb, at the capital of the state, where Ken- 
tucky, in proud grief, surrounded liy thousands of her 

121 




^. 



m 





0bsu(]i|ies of 



LULiii 



i^ 



gallant men, had laid liim beneath the sculptured marble. 
That day her husband's corse had been borne past that 
son's tomb. All the past, painfully extended, and seem- 
ingly interminable winter, she had been wrung with 
that hopeless grief which attends loving and suffering na- 
tures, necessarily separated from one another. Her own 
life was whiling away, and each had the additional pang of 
knowing that other's illness, and yet realizing the impossi- 
bility of ever being again together during life. 

"Why," said she, "should I grieve, or mourn, or weep? 
He has departed, possessed of a nation's love. He died as 
he had wished to die — in the full hope of the humble but 
trusting Christian. It is but a short time — a few months 
• — perhaps a year — not longer — and we will be united for- 
ever." In that dread hour, who shall say the years that 
lone matron lived were not a decade ? Through her throng- 
ed mind passed the remembrances of a life-time. She has 
the sympathy and regard of millions, and in that watch of 
the dead, she was companioned by the thoughts or dreams 
of countless thousands, who remembered what event the 
morrow was to commemorate in history. , "The peace of 
our Lord, which passeth all understanding, be with her 
and remain with her always." 

Saturday, July 10. 

Long before the day had fairly broke, every avenue of 
ai)proach to the city was crowded by those who came up 
to render their last tribute to him who had always, living, 
received their measureless devotion. For three days the 
current had set that way. Each public and private house 
was overflowing. The whole city teemed with their visi- 
tants. It was computed that nearly one hundred thousand 



m 



JS T/'-"^''' 



I' 



ttuDi^H t^ian. 



r.Llr''UL 



persons, of all classes and sexes, had come together on that 
memorable occasion. The multitude who could find no 
other resting-place, slept in the market, and in the court 
house. Every barn, stable and out house, was filled with 
tired occupants. 

At an early hour, those appointed to meet at Ashland, 
had gathered together within the house. The pall-bearers, 
his oldest and most distinguished friends in Kentucky, 
the Senate Committee, and the deputation of the Clay 
Festival xissociation, with his family and kindred. In 
front were arranged the deputations from other states, from 
the Masonic fraternity, and a dense crowd were in a semi- 
circular array before the porch. Upon a bier, cushioned 
with flowers, and immediately in front of the door, they 
laid the iron coffin that inclosed the body of Henry Clay. 
Upon it shone a clear, cloudless sun. Upon the breast 
of it reposed the civic wreaths of the Clay Festival Asso- 
ciation; the wreath of immortelles; the laurel wreaths 
from Baltimore and Philadelphia, and bouquets from 
"Washington, Wilmington, Trenton and Little Falls; while 
strewed around were the floral ofi'erings of every prin- 
cipal place, from the national capital to the grave. 

It was as bright a day in 1844, toward the close of that 
year, but nature had put on her sere and yellow leaf, when 
that same spot, and that same lawn, were witnesses of a 
great and solemn spectacle. The State of Kentucky came 
to the Sage of Ashland — her electoral college, her state 
authorities and congressional representatives, her citizens 
from the most distant places within her limits, the daugh- 
ters of Kentucky and the military companies of Frankfort 
and Lexington. Then, as now, that immense audience 
were bathed in tears. L^pon that green, the same Judge 

1-23 



(9'_u^jt|i(ii:.s of 



^s 



Ua^derwood, then President of the College of Electors, 
now Chairman of the Senate Committee, ha vino; in charo-e 
the remains of Hexry Clay, was their spokesman. Then 
he thus closed his speech : " In the shades of Ashland, may 
you long continue to enjoy peace, quiet, and the possession 
of those great faculties which rendered you the admiration 
of your friends and the benefactor of your country. And 
when, at last, death shall demand its victim, while Ken- 
tucky will contain your ashes, rest assured, that old and 
faithful friends, those who, knowing you longest, loved 
you best, will cherish your memory- and defend your repu- 
tation." 

" The Mill boy of the Slashes;" the youthful devotee of 
the Fathers of the country; the eloquent advocate of eman- 
cipation in Kentucky before this century had commenced, or 
the constitution of his state had been framed; the dauntless 
foe of oppression and tyranny everywhere; always the cham- 
pion of American interests; the great commoner; the au- 
thor of the war of 1812; the negotiator of the peace of 
1815, and the convention with Great Britain; the benefac- 
tor of the South American republics, he " had looked 
abroad and called a new world into existence;" the savior 
of his country in the Missouri compromise; the friend of 
Greece in the burning eloquence of 1824, while Speaker; 
their able advocate as Secretary of State, securing the as- 
sistance of Russia, through which thus closed their struggle, 
and through the same power procuring the acknowledg- 
ment, by Spain, of the Independence of South America; 
restoring the peace of the country by the compromise of 
1838; exposing, by his own self-sacrifice, the dangerous 
tendencies of fanaticism aimed at the lawful institutions 
of the country; preserving peace with France in 1835; his 

124 





"^■^^M"''' ^^*^'^'^-^ t^Uii. 



almost numberless acts of public service during fifty years; 
closing that series of self-sacrifices by offering up Lis own 
life as the costly price at which the country saAv the " sla- 
very issues" finally adjusted and settled, in 1850; and be- 
fore that great drama of his life had closed, the two lead- 
ing political divisions had solemnly indorsed those prin- 
ciples as their common chart, by which the ship of state 
should be hereafter conducted. 

From that solemn bed of death to his own sweet home, 
millions had attested their love. Dying on the 29th of 
June, his body rested on that Sabbath, which was at once 
the Lord's day, and the anniversary of the nation's Holy- 
day of Independence. And on that day every minister 
of God solemnly attested to his hearers the greatness 
and the goodness of the dead; and every orator, the next 
day, when the anniversary was celebrated, paused, and in 
befitting language eulogized the life and public services of 
Henry Clay. Through thousands of miles that the con- 
tinuous procession had journeyed, on every side the mourn- 
ing multitude had passed, and the eye everywhere rested 
upon the dark draperies of woe; wending their slow way 
between funeral arches, and inscriptions, and mottoes, and 
paintings, and busts, and statues, and monumental columns 
erected on the instant, — all these decked in honor of the 
friend of mankind. Men, women, and children, even of the 
tenderest years, all bore, in their saddened features and 
tear-stained faces, those most eloquent testimonials of his 
worth. From \Yashington to the tomb was one votive of- 
fering of wreaths of oak, immortelles, the cypress, the ivy 
and the laurel — bouquets of flowers of every species, and in 
wondrous profusion. These alone, if it had been possible 
to collect them, would have piled a monument. It was no 

]2'} 





9 



(9b3e(^i|Ies of 



m 



unfrequent sight to Avituess youth and beauty bend and 
press their lips upon his sable shroud. Old men would 
pause beside his iron case, and burst into uncontrollable 
sobs. Early manhood and middle age, that had banked 
their hopes in him, and clung to him as their chieftain and 
leader, to the last moment resisting the assured certainty 
that they were no more to listen to that silver voice, nor 
hang upon its tones, with speechless woe at length realized, 
that for the future, his memory, and the preservation of his 
patriotic principles were their future charge. 

His late colleagues in the senate — that revered band of 
chosen intimates, who were honored as his pall-bearers, 
the New York delegation, and his family and kindred, 
grouped near the porch and within his dwelling; on the 
porch stood the minister of God, at whose hand he had re- 
ceived the sacrament, when last he was alive, within those 
halls — the same minister who had baptized him, his chil- 
dren that were left to him, and the children of his dead 
son. Col. Clay — while all around the eye rested on his 
near friends and neighbors, who were there assembled, and 
yet, without these, lines of people from many states, and the 
far off counties of his own. 

The funeral services were performed by the Rev. 
Edward F. Berkley, Rector of Christ Church, Lexing- 
ton. Xever, perhaps, did that impressive service fall 
upon the ear more solemnly than then. And then the 
preacher lifted up his voice and thus addressed the people: 

" My Friends : — A Nation's griefs are bursting forth at 
the fall of one of her noblest sons. 

"A mighty man in wisdom — in intellect — in truth — lies 
in our presence to-day, insensible, inanimate and cold. 

126 




ikdi-i] ^hij. 



i:i'.:i"Mi. 



The heart Avhich ouce beat with a pure and lofty patriot- 
ism — shall beat no more. The renowned Statesman, who 
Avas learned in the laws of diplomacy and government, 
will never again give his counsel in affairs of State. And 
the voice which was ever raised in behalf of truth and lilj- 
ertv, is silenced forever ! 

" Indulge me in a remark or two, whilst I speak of him; 
and in consideration of the personal comfort of this im- 
mense assembly, my words shall be few. 

"This is neither a proper place nor a fit occasion to 
dwell on the peculiar and striking incidents of his public 
life; and I mean to say a few words only of his character 
as viewed in connection with religion. 

" We have not come here to weave a garland of praises 
for the brow of the fallen statesman, nor to throw the in- 
cense of adulation upon the urn which incloses his ashes; 
but we have come here to pay the last offices of respect 
and aliection, to a neighbor and a friend; and to draw, 
from the visitation Avhich has stricken down one of the 
mightiest of our mighty men, sucli lessons as are calculated 
to teach us ' what shadows we are, and what shadows we 
pursue.' 

" Our venerated friend has been before the public eye 
for half a century; and for nearly the whole of that period 
in the occupancy of high public places. He has done the 
State great service. He combined in his character such 
elements as could make him no other man tlian he was, 
except, that he might have been as great a soldier as he 
was a Statesman and Orator. But the crowning excellence 
of all his virtues, was this — he was a Christian, 

" As he was eminently open, candid, and honest, in his 
long public career, so was he deeply sincere in his adop- 

127 




ill" 



CM3se(|i|ies of 



S^P^ 



t^tSSt 



tion, as the rule of his life, of the principles of our holy 
religion. 

"Although the suns of seventy summers had shone down 
upon him before he made a public profession of Christ, yet, 
when he did make it, he did it, not mechanically, and as a 
matter of course, because he was an old man — he did it 
heartily, and upon conyiction, because he felt himself to 
be a sinner, and because he felt the need of a Savior ! 
And when he came to make the inquiry. What shall I do ? 
and it Avas told him what he ought to do — he did it gladly 
— he made haste to fulfill the purposes of his heart. And 
his great mind being brought to the investigation of the 
pure and simple doctrines of the Cross, new beauties, in a 
new world broke in upon him, of the existence of which, 
to their full extent, he had never dreamed before. And I 
know, that in times when he lay under the hand of disease, 
and of great bodily infirmity, here at home, he clung to 
those doctrines, by a lively faith, as the highest consola- 
tions of his soul. 

" Although he had his Church preferences, yet the power 
and influence of the teachings of Christianity, rightly un- 
derstood, gave rise to sympathies in his nature, which ex- 
tended to all Christian people. 

" Surrounded as he Avas, by the allurements and fascina- 
tions of a high public place, nevertheless, he strove to 
walk in the pure and perfect way; and by a steady main- 
tenance of the principles which bound him to religion and 

God — like the eagle, with his eye fixed upon the sun, 
is course was onward and upward ! 

" And these principles, which our illustrious friend found 

comforting: and consolino' in life, did not forsake him 




rhen he had nothing else on earth to cling to. 

123 



fteohij fc;ii|t|. "''! 



rnrrmii.iMu 



" lu reference to some of his last hours, a lady, connected 
with him by family, who recently spent several days at his 
bedside, writes : ' He is longing to be gone, and said some- 
thing of this kind to me, whicli caused me to ask him, if 
he did not feel perfectly willing to wait until the Almighty 
called him. He replied, 0,my dear child, do not misun- 
derstand me — I supplicate Him continually for patience to 
do so. I am ready to go — no, not ready, but willing. Wo 
are none of us ready. We cannot trust in our own merits, 
but must look to Him entirely.' 

" The writer adds : ' He is the most gentle, patient, and 
aifectionate sick person I almost ever saw — thanks you for 
every thing, and is as little trouble as he can possibly be.' 

" And this is the power of religion upon a vigorous and 
discriminating mind — a mind fully capable of meeting all 
the s:reat emergencies which have ever arisen in its col. 
lisions with other great minds, at the bar, in the senate, and 
upon the forum. • 

"And 0, the recollection to mourning friends, and to a 
mourning country is of the most consoling interest, that, 
as in his life, by his genius and wisdom, he threw light, 
and peace, and blessing, upon his country; so, in his death, 
the Glorious Giver of grace and wisdom, threw light, and 
peace, and blessing upon him — borne upward, as he was, 
by the aspirations to heaven — of a million hearts. 

" But his earthly career is run. Full of age and full of 
honors, he goes down to earth, to ashes and to dust. A 
man of extraordinary genius. A man of the highest prac- 
tical wisdom — possessing the largest powers of true elo- 
quence — a pure patriot — a sincere Christian, and a friend 
of his race. 

"His friends will grieve for him — the Church has lost 

9 129 





Oh3C(]i!ic3 of 



him — his countrj' will bewail him — aud hereafter, when 
the passing traveler shall come to Ashland, and look for 
the bland, agreeable and hospitable host, he icill not jiiid 
him here ! His aged wife, who, for more than fifty years, 
has grieved with him in his sorrows, aud rejoiced with him 
in his public success, shall go down unto the grave, mourning 
^and men, in every civilized nation of the earth, will shed 
a tear at the fall of such a man. But he is gone to a 
brighter and a better world. Whilst this memorial shall 
remain of him here, that he was as simple and sincere in 
his religion, as he was great in wisdom and mighty in 
intellect. 

" God is no respecter of persons. Neither genius, nor 
wisdom, nor power, nor greatness can avert the fatal darts 
which fly thick and fast around us. If public services of 
the highest value— a fair fame which reaches to the utmost 
habitations of civilized man, and an integrity as stern as 
steel, could have done this--»-a nation had not been in tears 
to-day. 

" But the great and the humble — the useful and the use- 
less — the learned and the ignorant— the mighty and the 
luean — the public and the private man — must all, alike, lie 
down in the cold chambers of the grave ! Death is the 
common leveller of men and of nations. Temples and 
monuments, which have been erected to perpetuate the 
achievements of statesmen and of heroes in past ages, have 
been ruined and robbed of their grandeur by the insatiable 
tooth of time — not a vestige remains of the glory that 
once covered the earth, and not a stone to mark the spot 
where the master of the world was laid. 

" And this is the end of man ! This, the obscurity and 
oblivion to which he shall come at last ! But his end may 



ISO 






be worse than tliis, if lio had no hope in the blessed Sa- 
vior's death. For, whoever confides in the world for the 
bestowment of true happiness — whoever trusts to its gains, 
its pleasures, or its honors, to bring liiui peace at the last, 
will find himself miserably imposed upon, and grievously 
deluded. He will find that this misplaced confidence will 
involve him in ruin, as inevitable, as it wdll be — eternal ! 



' Lean not on earth! 'twill pierce thee to the heart: — 
A broken reed at best, but oft a sjDear ! 
On its sliarji point, peace bleeds, and hope expires.' 

" If we aspire to a true, a deathless immortality, let us 
not seek it in the praises of men, or in the enrollment of 
our name upon the page of history — for these all shall per- 
ish ! — but let us seek, by obedience to God, and a recogni- 
tion of the claims of religion, to have our names written in 
the Lamb's Book of Life. This, and this only, will guaran- 
tee an immortality as imperishable as the heavens, and as 
certain as the Life of God. 

" The observation is almost universal, that ' all men 
think all men mortal but themselves.' And yet there is 
nothiug more surely reserved for us in the future, than 
disease and dissolution. And these too, may, and very 
often do, come when we are least expecting a disturbance 
of our plans. 

" The statesman falls with plans of future glory yet un- 
accomplished; — the poet expires in the midst of his song, 
and the magic of his muse lingers on his dying lips; — the 
sculptor drops his chisel before he has taught the marble 
to breathe, — and the painter his pencil, while the living 
figures on his canvass are yet unfinished; — the sword slips 
from the hand of the warrior, before the battle is won, — 



0!) sc^nieg of 

H?Tim 




aud the orator is silenced, while the words of wisdom are 
yet dropping in sweetest accents from his lips.'" 

'"I said ye are God's, and children of the Most High, 
but ye shall die like men.' 

"No consideration can purchase a moment's respite, 
when the decree shall go forth, ' this night thy soul shall 
be required of thee !' whether it be uttered at the doors of 
the stately mansion, or at the cot of the lowly poor. And 
not to be wisely and well prepared to hear this summons, 
is destructive of the best interests of the soul. Happy 
they who have made a friend in God. Happy they who 
have done, and they who do this in early life — the fail- 
ing of which, in his case, our revered friend so often 
himself regretted — thrice happy they in whom greatness 
and goodness meet together. Imperishable joys shall be 
awarded to them. They shall shine as stars in the firma- 
ment forever and ever. In each successive generation 
their ' memory shall be blessed,' and their ' nauie be had in 
everlasting remembrance;' and, ' their conflicts o'er, their 
labors done,' the ransomed spirit shall escape from the 
prison that confines it to the earth, and the King of Kings 
shall bind upon their victorious brow, wreaths of unfading 
glory, in that blest place — 



Where pain, and weariness, and sorrow cease, 
And cloudless sunshine fills the land of peace.' 



" Our great friend and countryman is dead ! He has no 
more connection with the living world, and we arc about 
to bear his honored remains to the beautiful spot, where 
our own dead lay, and around which our memories love to 
linger. What to him, I ask you, are now the policy, or 
the politics of the country ? What to him, now, are the 

132 




iti^i)i\t! t^iiijr 



nice points upon which turn the honor of the State ? What 
to him, now, is the extension of empire ? — the rise or fall 
of nations? — the dethronement or the establishment of 
kings? His work is done, and well done. As it is with 
him, so shall it shortly be with every one of us. Then, 

' So live, that when thy summons comes, to join 
The innumerable caravan, that moves 
To the pale realms of shade, where each shall take 
His chamber in tlie silent halls of death — 
Thou go not, like the quarry slave at night, 
8courg"d to his dungeon; but sustained and soothed 
By an unfoltering trust, approach thy grave 
Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch 
About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.' 



" One word more. The distinguished subject of our 
present attention, has fallen a martyr to his country. The 
cause of his sickness and his death originated in his last 
great efforis in securing the passage, through Congress, of 
certain measures, known as The Compromise. In more 
senses than one, may he receive the heavenly welcome, 
' Well done, good and faithful servant.' His love of coun- 
try — his enthusiasm in any cause in which her interests 
were involved — his great and singular powers — his won- 
derful and controlling influence over even great minds, 
marked him as the man of the age, and adapted him, in a 
peculiar manner, to act and to lead in grave questions of 
government. 

" And if, in the future, any one section of this great re- 
public should be arrayed in hostility against another; and 
any cruel hand shall be uplifted to sever the bonds which 
unite us together as a common people — the Genius of Lib- 
erty shall come down in anguish and in tears, and throw- 
ing herself prostrate before his tomb, implore the Mighty 



M.f«.^.. .iil.lNi.. 



' 0b sc()i|ieg of 'i 



Euler of nations — for the preservation of our Institutions, 
and the protection of our Liberty, and of our Union — to 
raise up from his ashes, another Clay ! " 

At the close of this address, for some moments the pres- 
sure of the crowd around the bier was so great as to ren- 
der it almost impossible to place the coffin in the hearse. 

The procession from Ashland was then formed : 

The Senate Committee. 
Delegation of the Clay Festival Association. 



PALL 



BEARERS. 



Ph 

Pi 



PALL 



BEARERS. 



The Family and Officiating Clergyman. 

Clay Guard, of Cincinnati. 

Dayton Committee. 

The Seventy-six, of Louisville. 

Citizens. 

LTpon reaching the head of Main street, the military, 
masonic fraternity, and the various associations received 
the body in open order and imcovered. The procession 
was then formed in the following order : 

GEN. PETER DUDLEY, 

OF FKA.XKFOaT, 

GRAND MARSHAL. 
Col. H. C. PINDELL and WILLIAM G. TALBOTT, 

SPECIAL AIDS. 

The Military, in sections of six, with reversed arms, muf- 
fled drums, colors furled, and draped 
in mourning. 

134 






— ■ 


' '^' IB 


WlJSIL 




■ tteSH 




Officers of tlie Army and Navy of the United States. 
Committee of Arrang'cments. 

Committee of the Senate of the United States, Judge 

UxDERWOOD, of Kentucky; Gen. Lewis Cass, of 

Michigan; Gov. Hamilton Fish, of New York; 

Gen. Samuel Houston, of Texas; Governor 

James C. Jones, of Tennessee; and 

Commodore Eobert F. Stockton, 

of New Jersey. 

Committee of the Clay Festival Association of New 

York: Joseph M. Price, Alfred G. Peckham, D. 

L. Pettee, Josiah P. Knapp, David Webb, and 

Nicholas Carroll, with them the venerable 

Governor Metcalf, of Kentucky. 

Clay Guard of Cincinnati, consisting of over one hundred 

Young Men. 

Dayton Committee. 

The Seventy- six from Louisville. 

The Deputation from Frankfort, with other Committees 

from various places. 
Committee of the city of Lexington, sent to receive the body 

Masonic Fraternity. 



PALI--BEARERS. 



PALL-BEAREns. 




B. W. Dudley, 
M. T. Scott, 
Geo. Eobertson, 
E. Warfield, 
Charles Carr, 
Roger Quarles, 






135 



Benj. Gratz, 
D. Yertner, 
Chilton Allan, 
R. Hawes, 
Garrett Davis, 
C. S. Morehead. 



mTlmmiMi^ 



(9b?i:c]i|ics of 



[The funeral car, •^^ilicll had been made under the direction of the 
citizens of Lexington, Avas of excelling taste in the design, exceedingly 
rich in material, and elegant in execution ; of quadrangular shajse, lined 
with velvet and satin, overhung with black crape, a largo silver urn of 
classic mould upon the top, surmounted -with a massive eagle of the same 
material, with outstretched pinions, grasping in his talons a bundle of 
arrows, the whole drapery, as well as the netting, covering the eight 
splendid white horses, heavily fringed with silver bullion. Each horse 
was led by a black groom, in the funeral costume of the Moors.] 

Officiating Clergyman and Family, consisting of 

Thomas Hart Clay, Wife and Children; 

James Brown Clay and Wife; 

John M. Clay; Henry Clay, Jr., 7iow Henry Clay, the 

eldest son of the late Col. Clay; 
Thomas Smith and Wife, with the younger orphan children 

of Col. Clay, 

[Whose guardians they are, as well as close kindred.] 

Mrs. Susan Carter, and other nieces and nephews of Mr. 

and Mrs. Clay. 

[Infirmity prevented Mrs. Clay from leaving Ashland ] 

Reverend Clergy of all denominations. 

Governor and Heads of Departments of the State of 

Kentucky. 
Committees of Cities, Towns and Counties of the State of 

Kentucky. 

Mayor and Council of the City of Lexington. 

President and Directors of Lexington Cemetery Company. 

Trustees and Faculty of Transylvania University. 

Judges, Members of the Bar, and Officers of the Fayette 

Circuit Court. 

136 






Judges of tlio Superior and Inferior Courts of Kcntueky, 

and Officers. 

Judges of the United States Courts, 

and Officers. 

jMeuibcrs and ex-Members of the Congress of the U. S. 

Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in sections of six. 
Sons of Temperance, in sections of six. 

Fire Companies, in sections of six. 

Members of the Senate and House of Representatives 

of the State of Kentucky. 

Teachers of Schools. 

Citizens on Foot, in sections of six. 
Citizens and Strangers in carriages, two abreast. 

Citizens and Strangers on Horseback, in sections of four. 

This section was very numerous, and presented an im- 
posing array of equestrians, besides the noblest specimens 
of the celebrated race of Kentuckians. 

From Ashland to the Cemetery, every house was clothed 
in mourning. At nearly every crossing, heavy and taste- 
ful draperies were transversely stretched from corner to 
corner — frequent displays of the national colors at half 
mast, and cased in crape — the large court house and public 
square covered with a sable mantle — the monument erected 

137 




illlllllll 

IH.,Mli,.ilHm. JMIIIi,B..l.i,i 



' 0!}.«!C'(]t(ies of 

ITiliniii 



to the memory of William T. Barry, in the square, also 
covered with bhick cloth. The street, through which the 
procession passed, was clothed with black from end to 
end — and lined with a dense crowd. Every window was 
filled, and each roof bore, its burden of spectators. The 
population of Lexington is some nine thousand, and when 
it is remembered that it was estimated an hundred thou- 
sand strangers were there, the mind can conceive readily 
the sublime spectacle that immense mass, embracing, lit- 
erally, every age, sex, condition and color, presented. 
Each male and all the children uncovered as the body 
passed, and every countenance displayed the deepest sor- 
row and sympathy. Where else, in all the universe, could 
such a scene be witnessed ? A whole country mournino- 
the loss of their benefactor — a nation's tears bedewing his 
grave, and the grateful memory of the republic building 
his immortal monument. 

As the line approached the cemetery, still other thou- 
sands were seen crowding every slope, hillock, and down 
into the vale Avhere he was to be temporarily entombed. 
A gun had announced the march of the procession — and 
then, simultaneously, the muffled drum — the dirge-like 
music — the chiming of the bells, and continuous discharge 
of minute-guns, during the hours that elapsed between the 
commencement and the close of the ceremonies, smote the 
hot and dusty air, which breathed everywhere, the heavy 
atmosphere of oppressed hearts, these pulsating with a com- 
mon suffering grief, that pervaded the land, and hung like a 
pall over the public mind — the inquiry, passing unanswered 
from lip to lip, " who shall supply his place — who now is 
our sure reliance, when the country he defended is in 



danger ?" 



138 



tfeni\ttCiqt). 




Slowly through the graveled way, the mourniug train 
passing within the cemetery grounds, the beloved dead was 
carried to his tomb. There the services of the Episcopal 
Church were closed by the rector. " Ashes to ashes — 
dust to dust," and the hollow sound reverberated with 
more power over the hearts of those present than would 
the loudest thunder. The Masonic Fraternity, the Family, 
the Senators and the Xew York Delegation, alone remain- 
ing near the bier; the Grand Master, assisted by the 
Grand Lodge of Kentucky, took charge of the corpse, and 
performed their highest masonic ceremonies in honor of 
the illustrious member of their Order. 

Governor Jones laid Ann S. Stephens' wreath of im- 
mortelles around the head; Joseph M, Price placed the 
wreath of oak and cedar, the offering of the Clay Festival 
Association of the city of New York, over his breast, 
and deposited, at the same time, and on that holy spot, 
which had been the home of love, and truth, and patriotism, 
the seal ring of one of the members of the Committee, and 
other mementoes of his comrades — and then the coffin was 
closed from mortal sight. By the generous permission of 
the Grand Lodge, who fully appreciated their sacred mis- 
sion, the Committee of the Clay Festival Association, 
with the Masonic Fraternity, bore the remains of Henry 
Clay to the vault prepared for their reception, and laid 
him beside his mother and his kindred. Plucking from 
within that tomb, oak leaves, with a silent prayer that 
their end might be like his, at peace with God and man, 
and a vow that while life remained, they would cherish 
his memory and seek to preserve his immortal principles 
— devotion to the honor, welfare and happiness of the 
country, and the perpetuation of the Union, that sad train 



i 




(?bsct]i|ies of 



nillTTTiinuL. 



slowly withdrew — the iron bound door closed behind them 
— the mouth of the tomb was sealed, and in the same order 
the marshaled host passed back their sad and thoughtful 
way— 

" Rest tlice — there is no prouder tomb." 

The procession had dispersed, but the gloom remained 
visible in every face, and the crowd silently dispersed to- 
ward their homes. At sundown the bells tolled, and 
thirty-one minute-guns were fired, and thus were closed, at 
his own home, the ever-memorable obsequies of the " First 
Citizen of the Eepublic!" 

In the eloquent language of the Lexington Observer : 
"All the crowds which we have seen, sink into insignifi- 
cance when compared to this. Were it not that no dis- 
play, however grand — that the collection of no multitude, 
however numerous — that the exhibition of no sorrow, how- 
ever deep and general — could have been commensurate 
with the genius, fame and services of the illustrious dead 
— we would say that the occasion was worthy of any man. 
Other places paid the same honors to the remains of our 
great statesman, but it was felt that here was the place 
where he originated his immortal career, and that, at least 
in proportion to our limited population, should be the 
marks of respect. And never did we have more cause to 
be proud of our city, county, and state. 

But our task is done. The patriot sleeps calmly in 
the ' city of the dead,' but he lives in the hearts of the peo- 
ple, and will live whilst human liberty has a votary. He 
was so decided a partisan, that in life he had many foes. 
But now that death has closed the scene, his virtues and 
his powers will be acknowledged by all. Perhaps, the his- 

140 




p' ifcDl-yGl^y 




tory of human greatness does not exhibit sucli a remarka- 
ble career. We doubt if in intellectual conllict he was ever 
foiled, if left to choose his own position. And this too, as 
he said, commencing with but a limited education. Per- 
haps no man has gone through a stormier political life. 
His friends always relied implicitly upon him against the 
most gigantic opponents — never did he disappoint their 
confidence. ' Hence, to the last, never was a man surrounded 
by such devoted friends; and the sad procession on Satur- 
day attested the hold he had upon the whole country. A 
child of the people — leaning alone upon the prayers of an 
humble but devoted mother, and the protecting care of a 
beneficent Providence, he made for himself a fame more 
enduring than marble, more precious than the sordid ad- 
vantages of power; placed himself before the world as its 
master-spirit; died amid a nation's tears, and has his name 
embalmed in a nation's memory." 

On Sunday, by appointment, — some of them having to 
leave immediately thereafter, — Mrs. Clay received the 
delegates of the Clay Festival Association, in the drawing- 
room, at Ashland. There were portraits of Mr. and Mrs. 
Clay; of their children, and of her brother and father, with 
a very large original picture of Gen. Washington and his 
family. Beneath the portrait of Col. Clay, hung his sword, 
worn in the fatal field of Buena Vista. There was the 
massive glass vase, which had been presented to him by 
the people of Pittsburg, and it was with water from that 
vase he had been baptized. There too were the splendid 
silver vases— the one presented by the ladies of Tennessee, 
and the other, and perhaps the most beautiful vase ever 
executed in this country, from the Gold and Siver Artisans 
of New York. Here Mrs. Clay was presented to the 



l» 



141 



rf!- 



delegation by her sou, James B. Clay, now a resident of 
St. Louis, who recognized among them familiar friends of 
his father and himself. Mrs. Clay was evidently suffer- 
ing from great depression, and this interview affected her 
still more. She was surrounded by devoted friends and 
honorable servitors of her husband from a far off Atlantic 
city, who had come there on the most mournful duty of 
their lives. They were afterward shown through the 
house, and they especially lingered in his library and sit- 
ing room. In the former were countless tokens of the af- 
fection and regard that had been showered upon him by 
his loving countrymen and countrywomen. Among other 
things were canes enough for an entire community, embrac- 
ing every variety that could be imagined — the costly and 
the massive — the antique and curious, and the grotesque. 
The delegation were shown through the grounds, and bore 
with them each a cane from those which had been presented 
to the illustrious dead, the offering and generous gift of 
the executors. They gathered sprigs of myrtle and of 
laurel — plucked some flowers, and tufts of moss and sod — 
and then " with a last lingering glance," reluctantly re- 
turned to Lexington. A portion left at dawn the next 
morning, while the senators, who tarried a few days, and 
those of the Clay Festival Delegation, who remained, were 
invited to meet "the Old Guard, of Kentucky," at the hos- 
pitable and princely mansions of two of their number. 

'This narrative is closed with a synopsis of his will. 
After bestowing all his personal effects, unconditionally, 
upon his wife, Lucretia Clay, constituting her executrix, 
and Judge Thomas A. Marshall and James 0. Harrison, 
his executors, devises his estate among the members of his 
family with great equity, and provides for the gradual 

142 




emancipation of his slaves. Those born after January, 
1850, to be free— tlie males at twenty-eight, and the females 
at twenty-five— the last three years' earnings, previous to 
their manumission, to be reserved as a fund for their ben- 
efit in their new homes in Liberia. 

Ashland remains the property of his wife, during her 
life, then to be sold, and the proceeds disposed of among 
his children. 

He devises to his friends as follows : 

" I give to my friend, Dr. B. W. Dudley, the gold snuff- 
box, presented to me by Dr. Hunt, late of Washington 
City. 

'■ I give to my friend, Henry T. Duncan, my ring, con- 
taining a piece of the coffin of General Washington. 

" I ffive to mv friend. Dr. W. N. Mercer, my snuff-box, 
inlaid with gold, said to have belonged to Peter the 
Great, Emperor of Russia." 

The will, with noble appreciation of the faith of those 
he intrusted with the fulfillment of his wishes, provides 
that no security shall be required from them. 



^? 



143 




0b3C()i|ies of 




The following order and testimonial of appreciation was 
laid before your Committee. 

company d, washington greys. 

special order. 

New York, July 3, 1852. 

This company having been detailed as the Guard of 
Honor over the remains of Hon. Henry Clay, the mem- 
bers are directed to assemble at the armory, This Day, 
Saturday, at 11 o'clock precisely, in full uniform, gray pan- 
taloons, without knapsacks, and with white gloves, crape 
on the left arm. 

JAMES LITTLE, 

Commandant. 
Chapin, Orderly. 

Regular Quarterly Meeting, Company D, Washington 
Greys, held at their Armory, 13th July, 1852. 

Lemuel W. Serrell, moved that Orderly Sergeant 
John R. Chapin, and ex-orderly Richard P. Clark, be 
appointed to draft suitable resolutions of thanks, for the 
attentions received by this company during their late visit 
to Albany. — Carried. 

After retiring, the committee presented the following: 

Whereas, Having returned from the melancholy dut}', 
which had fallen to our lot, of escorting the remains of 
the late Henry Clay to the seat of the State government, 
and feeling duly sensible of the honor conferred upon us, 
and of the unremitting kindness and attention which 
awaited us on all hands, and feeling anxious, as soon as 
possible, to express the gratitude which actuates us, there- 
fore, be it 

144 




tUoni t'lciii 



jUllUIiUi 



Resolved, That the thanks of this company are eminently 
due, and arc hereby tendered to the Common Council of 
this city, and its Committee of Arrangements, for the 
honor conferred in selecting Company D, for guard and 
escort duty over the body of the late Henry Clay. 

Resolved, That we tender our sincere and heart-felt 
thanks to the officers, members and ex-members of the Al- 
bany Burgess Corps, for the unremitting attention paid 
to us by them, while in Albany. 

Resolved, That we also feel sensibly the honor conferred 
upon us by Governor Hunt, in reviewing this company, 
and by the very eloquent and affecting remarks addressed 
to us by him. 

Resolved, That the thanks of Company D are due to Col. 
Frisbie and Staff, and the Albany Republican Artillery, 
for the escort on our arrival and departure; and finally, 
we extend the expressions of our warmest feelings of re- 
membrance and gratitude to the citizens of Albany, and 
to all with whom we were brought in contact, while there, 
for the universal good feeling and kindness with which 
WG were treated. 

JAMES LITTLE, Commandant. 

Lemuel W. Serrell, Secretary. 




FRIDAY, JULY 9th. 

This day, your Committee held their first meeting, after 
their return from the capitol of the state, where they had 
placed the remains of the honored dead, in the keeping of 



10 



145 



0bge(^i|ies of 



■iiimuiiiu.i^- 



the corporate authorities of Albany, upon whom the mourn- 
ful and honored duty devolved of rendering their testimony 
of homage to the memory and virtues of the illustrious 
deceased. 

On motion, the following resolutions were unanimously 
adopted : 

Resolved, That the Common Council of the city of New 
York will solemnize the death of the Hon. Henry Clay, 
by a civic and military procession. 

Resolved, That Tuesday, July 20th, be designated as the 
day for the public funeral solemnities in honor of the 
memory of the lamented Henry Clay. 

Resolved, That our fellow-citizens generally, and the dif- 
ferent societies, trades and associations, and Fire Depart- 
ment of this city and adjoining counties, are requested to 
unite in this testimony of respect to the illustrious dead; 
and all societies and associations intending to co-operate, 
are requested to communicate with the Committee, at the 
chamber of the Board of Assistant Aldermen, from Wed- 
nesday, the 14th, to Saturday, the 17th inst., from 12 to 5 
o'clock, p. M., each day, in order to make the necessary 
arrangements to carry out the views of the Common 
Council, in an appropriate manner. 

Resolved, That the army and navy of the United States, 
on this station, arc requested to co-operate wath us in 
making the necessary arrangements, and that the Com- 
mittee on Military be requested to communicate with the 
commanders of the different stations. 

Resolved, That no banner, bearing political devices or in- 
scriptions, shall be admitted in the procession. 

146 




ijaynj tMqij, 




Resolved, That in order to render more etlcctive the ac- 
tion of the Committee, Special sub-committees be appointed 
^vith power, to direct and carry into effect the duties spe- 
cially delegated to them. 

The cliairman then announced the followino; 
SPECIAL SUB-COMMITTEES. 

Oji Military, 
Messrs. Barker, Smith and Tait. 

On Civic Societies and dissociations, 
Messrs. Tweed, Ward and Anderson. 

On Fire Department, 
Messrs. Valentine, McGown and Boyce. 

On Programme, 
Messrs. Comptox, Trotter, Woodward, Wright and Bard. 

On Invitations, 
Messrs. Smith, Brisley and Trotter. 

On selecting an Orator, 
Messrs. Brisley, Tweed and Barker. 



TUESDAY, JULY 13. 

The Committee met pursuant to adjournment. Numer- 
ous communications and delegations were received from 
civic societies and associations, expressing a desire to par- 
ticipate in the funeral solemnities in honor of the departed 
statesman. 

147 




«.-<*x*,Vl 



C)'is;jqi|ics of 




Brigadier-General William Hall, was selected as the 
Grand Marshal of the day. 

The Light Guard, Capt. E. Vincent, was selected to 
act as GuAED of Honor to the funeral car. 

Subsequently, the Committee on Invitation, issued the 
annexed circulars to a number of the corporate bodies 
and distinguished gentlemen in the United States, as well 
as to many of the citizens of this city. 

City Hall, 
New York, July 14, 1852. 

Dear Sir : — ^The undersigned, on the part of the Joint 
Committee, appointed by the Common Council of this 
city, to make the necessary arrangements for solemnizing 
the obsequies of the late Honorable Henry Clay, on the 
20th instant, respectfully invite you to be present on that 
occasion, and unite with the Common Council and citizens 
of New York, in this testimony of respect to the illustrious 
deceased. 

Yours, very respectfully, 

WESLEY SMITH, 
WM. J. BRISLEY, 
JONATHAN TROTTER, 

Committee on Invitation. 

City Hall, 
New York, July 14, 1852. 

The undersigned, on behalf of the Joint Committee of 
the Common Council of the city of New York, to make 
the necessary arrangements for solemnizing the obsequies 
of the late Honorable Henry Clay, on the 20th instant, 

148 



B 




ilt:i)i\t| C'lqlj. 



respectfully invite you to participate on that occasion, as 
Pall-Bearer, in uniting with the Common Council and 
citizens, in paying respect to the illustrious deceased. 

Yours, very respectfully, 

WESLEY SMITH, 
AVM. J. BRISLEY, 
JONATHAN TROTTER, 

Committee on Invitation. 

From the time of the announcement that the obsequies 
of the revered Henry Clay would be solemnized in a 
public manner, the citizens, civic and military associations, 
political societies, officers of the army and navy, members 
of the bar, and in fact the whole population seemed to vie 
with each other who should perform the best service, or 
render the greatest tribute of respect to the memory of 
the man whom the whole nation, with one voice, devoutly 
lamented. 

To which the following replies have been received. 

Washington, July 15, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I regret that my official engagements, at 
Washington, will not allow me to accept your invitation, 
to be present at the " solemnizing the obsequies of the late 
Hon. Henry Clay, on the 20th instant," at New York, 
and. 

Have the honor to remain. 
Gentlemen, 

Your ob't serv't, 

WINFIELD SCOTT. 

JMessrs. W. SMirn, W. J. Bkislky and J. TnoxTEi:, &c., &c. 

149 



» 



nrnMiiiiiii. 




(9bse'()iiies of 



Albany, July 19, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — Please accept my acknowledgments for 
tlie honor you have done me in inviting me to attend the 
obsequies of the late Henry Clay, which are to be sol- 
emnized in your city to-morrow. 

I sincerely regret that my official engagements do not 
permit me the melancholy satisfaction of uniting with the 
Common Council and citizens of New York, in the pro- 
posed, demonstration of grief for the loss, and respect for 
the memory, of the departed patriot. 

Very respectfully, 

Yours, &c., 

WASHINGTON HUNT. 

Wesley Smith, \Vm. J. Bkislev, .Iona. Trotter, Esq's., Committee. 



Troy, N. Y., July 19, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I have the honor to acknowledge the re- 
ceipt of your invitation, on the part of the "Joint Com- 
mittee," to unite with the Common Council and citizens 
of New York, in "solemnizing the obsequies of the late 
Hon. Henry Clay." 

It would afford me sincere gratification to participate 
with you, in this public demonstration of respect to the 
memory and distinguished services of the illustrious de- 
ceased, and in the hope that I might still be able to accept 
- the invitation with which you have honored me, I have de- 
ferred replying to your communication until this day. 
But I regret exceedingly to find that pressing private en- 
gagements, as well as official duties, will compel me to 

150 



i)-cni*ji Giny. 



^S?^-@: 



':i'.!i"i... 



:mmw<^^. 



forego the pleasure of being with you on an occasion of 
such universal interest. 

I am, gentlemen, 

With great respect, 

Your oL'dt servant, 

JOHN E. WOOL. 

Messrs. Smith, Brisley, and Tkotter, Committee on Invitation. 



Washington, July 16, 1852. 

Gentlemen — I deeply regret that my engagements 
here will deprive me of the power of uniting with you on 
the 20tli inst., in solemnizing the obsequies of the late 
Hon. Henry Clay. 

In common with all the citizens of this republic, I enter- 
tain the highest respect and veneration for the memory 
of the illustrious deceased. His character as a statesman 
and patriot now forms a part of the rich inheritance of 
his country; and his great example will continue, through 
all future time, to influence the character of posterity, and 
liberalize and nationalize the hearts and minds of future 
American statesmen, 

I have the honor to be, gentlemen, 

Very respectfully, 
Your ob'dtserv't, 

JAS. SHIELDS. 

Messrs. Wesley SjMITH, W.m. J. Brisley, and Jonathan Trotter, 

Committee on Invitation. 
151 




v)b3C()i(ies of ''' 



Washington, 15th July, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I have the honor to acknowledge the 
receipt of your invitation, to unite with the Common 
Council and citizens of New York, on the 20th inst., in 
solemnizing- the obsequies of the late Honorable Henry 

Clay. 

It would afford me a mournful pleasure to join in this 
public demonstration of respect to the memory of the illus- 
trious dead; but I find that my public duties here, forbid 
that I should consult my inclination by accepting your 
invitation. 

I am, gentlemen, very respectfully, 

Your ob'dt servant, 

N. K. HALL. 

To Wesley Smith, Wm. J. EBi8r.EY,and Jona. Tuotter, Esq's., Committee. 



^i 



Washington, July 16, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I received yesterday the invitation with 
which, as the Joint Committee of the Common Council of 
the city of New York, you have honored me, to be present 
at the solemnization of the obsequies of the late Honorable 
Henry Clay, on the 20th instant. The high personal ad- 
miration which I have always entertained for the lofty 
patriotism, elevated character, and brilliant genius of Mr. 
Clay, would prompt me to avail myself of every opportu- 
nity of testifying my reverence for his memory. 

It is therefore, with unfeigned regret, that I feel com- 
pelled, by the pressure of my duties here, to refrain from 
uniting with the Common Council and citizens of New 




'''jifciiJJIIUilLMtEL: 




',''' if6i)t(\ t}i;)[|. 



York iu their most appropriate testimony of respect to 
the illustrious deceased, whose loss our whole country so 
deeply deplores. 

Very respectfully, 

Your ob't servant, 

J. A. BAYARD. 

Messrs. Wesley P.mitii, William J. Brisley, and Jonathan Tkottek, 

Committee on Invitation. 




PORTCHESTER, 19tH JuLY, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I have just received your favor of the 
14th inst., inviting me to unite with the Common Council 
and citizens of New York, in solemnizing the obsequies of 
the late Hon. Henry Clay, and I regret that it will not 
be possible for me to be present. 

The great talents of our late eminent fellow-citizen; his 
distinction as an orator and a statesman, and the high rank 
which he has always held among the prominent men of his 
day, give to every man, of true American feeling, a deep in- 
terest in the perpetuation of his fame as a part of the 
property of the country. With this feeling of respect for 
the departed statesman, it is a source of sincere regret to 
me that I cannot unite with the Common Council and cit- 
izens of New York, in paying a last tribute to his memory. 

I am. gentlemen, 

Very respectfully, 

Your ob't servant, 

JOHN A. DIX. 

Messrs. Wesley Smith, Wm. J. Brisley, and Jon. Trotter, Committee. 

l.J3 




(9b serines of 



City Hall, 
Philadelphia, July 14, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I was directed by the Committee of 
Councils of the city of Philadelphia, appointed to receive 
the remains of the late Heney Clay, to express to you 
their acknowledgments for your polite invitation to visit 
your city on the late mournful occasion, and to thank you 
for the very kind and hospitable manner in which they 
were treated whilst there. 

With great respect, 
JOHN PKICE WETHERILL, 

Chairman. 

Alderman Cornell, Esq., and Associates of Board of Aldermen, N. Y. 




Council Chamber, 
July 17, 1852. 
Gentlemen : — We are directed by the Councils of Phil- 
adelphia, in forwarding you the inclosed resolution, to ex- 
press to you their thanks for your very kind and polite in- 
vitation. Accept, on behalf of ourselves and our colleagues, 
the assurance of our high respect and esteem. 

Yours, very truly, 

THOMAS SNOWDEN, 
President of Common Council. 
William Morris, President of Select Council. 

Messrs. Wesley Smith, Wji. J. Brisley, Jon. Trotter, Com. on Invitation. 

Council Chamber, 
July 17, 1852. 

Resolved, That the invitation extended by the Committee 
of Councils of New York to the Mayor and members of 

134 



SEE 






,v ttei)i\q t'ii)i|. »! 



»■-;!; 



Councils of this city, to visit that city, on Tuesday next, 
to participate in the funeral ceremonies, to be observed 
there in commemoration of the death of Hexry Clay, be 
accepted, and that the Presidents of Councils be directed 
to express our appreciation of the kindness thus offered. 

["Extract from ]\Iinutcs of Councils.] 

Attest, CRAIG BIDDLE, 

Clerk of Common Council. 

Edmund Wilcox, Clerk of Select Council. 



Mayor's Office, 
Brooklyn, July 19, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I have the pleasure to acknowledge the 
receipt of your note of the 14th inst., inviting the Common 
Council of Brooklyn to unite with the Common Council 
and citizens of New York, in solemnizing the obsequies of 
the late Hon. Henry Clay, deceased. The Common 
Council have unanimously accepted your invitation, but 
owing to arrangements having been made for a discourse 
to be delivered by the Rev. Doctor Cox, on the 20th inst., 
it may not be possible for them to be present with you. 

Very respectfully, yours, 

CONKLIN BRUSH, Mayor. 

To Messrs. Wesley Smith, Wm. J. Brisley, and Jon. Trottek, Committee. 




Troy, July 17, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — By order of the Common Council of this 
city, I reply to your invitation to us to attend, on the 20th 



I.-)-) 



i.n,iii,<iiii.iiiiw,iiiminn.i,ir 



(i)'3SCt]l|ie? of 



JimtiTiTiiii,, 



inst,, the solemnization of the obsequies of Henry Clay, 
which invitation, our Board has, by resolution, accepted. 

I regret to be obliged to say, that before receiving (yes- 
terday) your note of invitation, I had made such business 
arrangements for Tuesday and Wednesday next, as render 
it utterly impossible for me to be present with you, to do 
honor to the memory of a man whom, living, I so highly 



regarded. 



Very respectfully, yours, 

GEO. GOULD, 

Mayor of Troy. 

Messrs. Wesley Sjiitii, Wm. J. Brisley, Jon. TKOTTEii, Committee. 



Hartford, July IT, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — Your polite note of invitation, to the 
Mayor and Council, " to be present and unite with citizens 
of New York in solemnizing the obsequies of the late Hon. 
Henry Clay," was received on the 16th inst. 

It will be a mournful pleasure to join in the ceremonies 
in honor to the memory of one of the greatest patriots and 
statesmen of the age. 

A delegation of the Council will be in attendance on the 
20th inst. 

Yours, respectfully, 

EBENEZER FLOWER, Mayor. 

Messrs. Wesley S.mitii, Wm. J. Brisley, Jon. Trotter, Com. on Invitation. 



p Hei)i\q Chi|. ''! 



!:i:iiuii!iiL_ 



New Haven, July 17, 1852. 

Gentlemen :— I have received your favor of the 14th, 
in behalf of the Joint Committee of the Common Council 
of the city of New York, inviting the Mayor and Common 
Council of the city of New Haven to unite with you in 
solemnizing the obsequies of the late Henry Clay, on the 
20th iust. 

It would afford me a mournful pleasure to pay that last 
tribute of respect to the illustrious statesman and patriot, 
but my engagements will not allow me to be present. 

I will communicate your courteous invitation to the 
Common Council, and hope some of them will be able to 
accept. 

Please, gentlemen, accept for yourselves, and the Com- 
mon Council whom you represent, my thanks, in behalf of 
the Common Council of New Haven, for your friendly 
courtesy, and assurances of my high personal consideration. 

With great respect, 

I am truly yours, 

A. N. SKINNER, 
Mayor of the city of JYew Haven. 

Messrs. Wesley Sjiitii, Wm. J. Brisley, Jmo. Trotter, Committee. 



f 



Office op the Clerk of the Common Council, 

Hudson, July 17, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — M a meeting of the Common Council of 
the city of Hudson, held this evening, the Mayor having 
presented and read your invitation, to attend the funeral 
solemnities in testimony of respect to the memory of the 



157 



»i 



05sc(|vies of 



fflii'iii 



Hon. Henry Clay, to take place in your city on the 20tli 
inst., it was unanimously resolved to accept the same. 

I am requested to say, that in accordance with said reso- 
lution, the Mayor and Council of our city will be in attend- 
ance at the Jistor House, on Tuesday morning next, at 
which place you can communicate with them, and assign 
to them such place in the ceremonies of the day as the 
Committee on Invitation, or of Arrangements may think 
proper. 

Very respectfully, yours, 

WILLIAM BRYAN, 

Clerk of Common Council. 
To Wesley Smith, Wm. J. Brisley, Jon. Trotter, Committee on Invitation. 



Washington Heights, July 16, 1852. 
Gentlemen : — I received your note last evening, an- 
nouncing my selection to deliver a eulogy on the life and 
character of Mr. Clay, on the 20th inst. Although I 
could have desired some longer time for preparation on so 
momentous an occasion, I will, however, essay the attempt. 
It will at least be an honor to fail on so glorious a theme. 
With great respect. 

Your obed't servant, 

N. BOWDITCH BLUNT. 

Hon. Wm. J. Brisley, Wji. M. Tweed, Isaac O. Bakkek, Committee. 



141 Henry street. 
New York, July 19, 1852. 
Gentlemen : — I have the honor to acknowledge the re- 
ceipt of your letter of the 12th inst., and the information 
that the Special Committee of the Common Council, to 



1l..llllill' 



;;;_ ifcrjl-iiGl^y. 



!!l'l!l 



make arrungements for the obsequies of the late lion. 
Henry Clay, have selected me to ofier a prayer prior to 
the delivery of the oration which is to be pronounced on 
the occasion. 

It will be highly gratifying to me to unite with the au- 
thorities and with our fellow-citizens, in this proposed 
tribute of respect for the memory of our illustrious patriot, 
and to perform the service requested from me on that oc- 
casion. 

Permit me to add, that this reply to the invitation would 
have been earlier, but for my absence from home when 
your letter was received, and it has but now come to my 
hands. 

Very respectfully. 

Your ob'dt servant, 

JOHN M. KREBS. 

Messrs. Wm. J. Brisley, Wm. M. Tweed, and Isaac O. Baekek, Committoe. 



239 Broadway, 13th July, 1852. 

Dear Sir : — Your favor, informing me of my appoint- 
ment as Grand Marshal on the occasion of the obsequies 
of the late Hon. Henry Clay, is received. I feel the 
honor conferred on me by your choice, and accept the posi- 
tion. I shall be pleased to meet the Committee as soon as 
possible, as there is but a short time to complete the de- 
tail of the necessary arrangements. 

I am, very respectfully. 

Yours, 

WM. HALL. 



John H. Chambers, Esq. 



1.59 




0bsi^(]i|ics of 



AsTOR House, 
New Yoek, July 15, 1852. 

Sir : — I liave the honor to acknowledge the receipt of 
your note of the loth inst., apprising me that the Commit- 
tee, appointed by the Common Council, have selected the 
Light Guard to act as Guard of Honor in the obsequies 
to be observed in honor of the late Hon. Henry Clay. 

I pray you will convey my acceptance to the Committee, 
and likewise to assure them of my high appreciation of the 
compliment they have conferred upon ray command. 

I am, very respectfully. 

Your ob'dt servant, 

ED. VINCENT, 
Commanding Light Guard. 

John H. Chambers, Esq. 



New York, July 17, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I had this day the honor of receiving, 
through you, an invitation from the Joint Committee, to 
unite, as Pall-Bearer, with the Common Council and citi- 
zens, in paying respect to the illustrious deceased. 

In accepting this invitation, allow me, gentlemen, to ex- 
press my unfeigned acknowledgments for the distinguished 
position your Committee have been pleased to assign me in 
the solemnities of that occasion; and at the same time to 
assure them of the consolation they have afforded to the 
countless friends of the deceased by their judicious and 
very liberal arrangements. The tears of a grateful people 

160 



ttJOrij till I). 



'I'l '"<■ 



may well and deservedly be shed over the remains of a 
statesman so eminently endowed — whose services have 
been performed without fear and without reproach — and 
whose long life has been spent in an untiring devotion to 
the interests of his country and the liberties of mankind. 

I have the honor, to be, gentlemen. 

Faithfully and truly, your friend, 

A. R. LAWRENCE. 

Aklerm.ni Wesley Sjiitii, W.ii. J. Brislev, Jon. Trotteb, Committee. 



New York, July 20, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I returned to the city this morning, and 
have the honor to acknowledge your invitation to attend 
as a Pall-Bearer, and join with the Common Council and 
our fellow-citizens, in paying the last tribute of respect to 
the late Hon. Henry Clay. I beg to assure you that I 
esteem your invitation a distinguished compliment, and 
will present myself to your Committee at the appointed 
time. 

I have the honor to be. 

With great respect, 

Yours, &c., &c., 

J. PHILIPS PHGENIX. 

Hon. Wesley Smith, Wji. J, Bkisley, Jon. Trotter, Com. on Invitation. 



New York, July 16, 1852, 

Gentlemen : — The honor conferred on mc by you, to of- 
ficiate as a Pall-Bearer, in the funeral procession of the 



11 



161 



i^ 



= V 



^^f>f 




.TTTT'.r/TtltiTTTriLinr^H-.irn 



(953(J(]iiies of 



late Hon. Henry Clay, is accepted with melaucliolr 
pleasure. 

I am, gentlemen. 

With sincere regard, 

Yours, (fee, (fee, 

G. H. STRHvER. 

Wesley Smith, Wjm. J. Brisley aiwl Jon. Trotter, Esq'rs., Committee. 




New York, July IT, 1852. 
Gentlemen : — I very much regret that, owing to my ar- 
rangements to be absent from the city on the 20th, it will 
not be in my power to accept your esteemed invitation to 
attend on the solemnization of the obsequies of Henry 
Clay, deceased, whose memory so well deserves the respect 
of the nation at large. I beg of you to excuse my neces- 
sary absence on, the occasion, and believe me to remain, 

Yours, most truly, 

M. ULSHOEFFER. 

Messrs. Wesley Smith, W.ai. J. Brisley, Jon. Trottek, Committee. 



Fort Washington, July 1G, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I have your invitation to participate as 
Pall-Bearer, on the occasion of solemnizing the obsequies 
of the late Honorable Henry Clay. I regret the event 
that has thrown the nation into mourning. I will take 
part, on the 20th instant, in paying respect to the illustri- 
ous deceased. 

Respectfully, gentlemen, 

Your obedient servant, 

THOS. O'CONOR. 




Aldermen Wesley Smith, Wm. J. Brisley, Jon. Trotter, Committee. 

162 



y 71 eid'u till I) 



New York, July 19, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I have received the invitation with which 
you have favored me, to attend as a Pall-Bearer, in sol- 
emnizing the obsequies of the late Henry Clay, and ac- 
cept h same. 

I am, very respectfully, 

Yours, 

WM. B. ASTOR. 

Wesley Smitii, Wm. J. Brist-ey, Jon. Trotter, Esq'rs., Committee. 



Franklin square, July 17, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I beg to acknowledge the receipt of your 
kind invitation of the 13th inst., to assist as Pall-Bearer 
in solemnizing the obsequies of the late Honorable Henry 
Clay, on the 20th inst., and to say, that I thankfully ac- 
cept the same. 

I remain, gentlemen. 

Yours, respectfully, 

JAMES HARPER. 

Messrs. Wesley Smith, Wm. J. Brisley, Jon. Trotter, Com. on Invitation. 



No. 22 Brevoort place. 

Gentlemen : — I have just received your invitation to 
act as Pall-Bearer, on the 20th inst., in paying respect to 
the illustrious deceased, the Hon. Henry Clay. 

With great respect, 

I have the honor to be. 
Yours, truly, 

W. N. BLAKEMAN. 

Messrs. Wesley Smith, Wm. J. Brisley, Jon. Trotter, Committee. 



m 



im 



ffntmniiu,.. 



' "■ 




& h geclnieg of 



67 Wall street, July 19, 1852. 

GexXTLEMEN :— Your note ot the 13tli, inviting me as 
Pall-Bearer, in solemnizing the obsequies of the late 
Hon. Henry Clay, owing to my absence from the city, 
did not reach me until Sunday evening. This is my apol- 
ogy for not having sooner answered your invitation. 

In case you have not filled the place designed for me, I 
accept your kind invitation to participate in the mournful 
tribute of respect to the departed statesman. I will be in 
attendance. 

Yours, respectfully, 

ROBT. H. MORRIS. 

Messrs. Wesley Smith, Wm. J. Brisley, Jo.\. Trotter, Committee. 



GRAND LODGE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, 
OF THE ANCIENT AND HONORABLE FRATERNITY OF FREE 

AND ACCEPTED MASONS. 

The Grand Lodge was specially convened by the M. W. 
Grand Master, for the purpose of adopting suitable mea- 
sures for rendering a tribute of respect to the memory of 
our late illustrious brother, the Hon. and M. W. Henry 
Clay. The Grand Lodge was opened in due form. 

Rt. W. Joseph D. Evans, Deputy Grand Master, presid- 
ing, after stating the object of the meeting, in a few 
eloquent and feeling remarks, delivered the following ad- 
dress; 

Brethren : — We have met in sadness ! The principal 
object of this call for a special meeting of the Grand 
Lodge of the State of New York, is to consider what 
course we ought to pursue in giving honor to the memory 

1G4 



;/ ite.i)r(| Okiti, 



of our late illustrious brother, the Honorable, the Most 
Worshipful Henry Clay, one of the most distinguished 
men and finished orators the world ever knew. 

We are called upon to mourn the loss of a great man, a 
finished gentleman, a beloved brother. Wo Imt sympa- 
thize with the whole world while deploring the death of 
Henry Clay. The magnitude and efliciency of his intel- 
lectual powers were not confined to the narrow limits of 
the Western Hemisphere; far, far over seas, and over land, 
extending to every clime, penetrating every country, city, 
town and hamlet, the power of his mighty intellect, and the 
benevolence of his magnanimous heart, will leave their in- 
fluence so long as there is a responsive heart to beat a 
consonant note for national freedom and universal love. 

As a statesman, he has a place upon one of the highest 
pinnacles of " Freedom's Temple ." His nobleness of charac- 
ter has been the admiration of every man. His boldness in 
the cause he deemed just amazed his friends and astounded 
his opponents, and gave efficiency to his eiforts. 

As an orator he was surpassed by none, upon whatever 
rostrum he was placed, whether in the senate chamber, at 
the bar, or before the people; he held all who heard him, 
spell-bound by the rich intonations of his voice. His 
graceful attitude, his faultless gestures, his illumined coun- 
tenance, and above all, his perfect rhetoric; no figure out 
of place, no imaginative thought but defined its aptitude 
without an explanation. Never, while indulging in those 
lofty flights of intellectual inspiration, did he collapse his 
wings and fall fluttering to the level of a common mind; 
always maintaining his position, he soared even higher and 
played with " fancy's gems," and " stooped to touch the 
loftiest thought." 



eibseqiiies of 




As a Mason, he stood among us as a high and honorable 
brother — a Mason, good and true. No one among us could 
possess his heart and be otherwise. It is in this capacity 
he has so entwined himself around the Mason's heart. As 
a man and a statesman he commands our admiration. As 
a philanthropist and Mason he insures our veneration and 
love. 

Initiated into the Order at twenty-two years of age, he 
continued an active and zealous Mason, and was elevated 
to the high position of Grand Master over the Ancient 
Free and Accepted Masons of Kentucky; since then he 
has given frequent instances of his firm attachment to the 
institution. He was not only an honorary member of one 
of the Lodges under this jurisdiction, but there are mem- 
bers of the craft, now present, who have in their possession 
evidences of his fondness for Masonry. 

It is but a few years since, while on a visit to this city, 
he expressed a wish to see the Bible* on which the great 
Washington took the oath of office as President of the 
United States; that wish was gratified, under due and 
appropriate ceremonies. Although these manifestations of 
his veneration for the Order may be brought down to a 
very recent date, yet it could not be expected, in the nature 
of things, that he would continue to be what we term an 
active member of a Lodge. 

The multiplicity of his engagements, public and private, 
which must necessarily have been heavy, forbade it. We 
were nevertheless bound to him, and he to us, by the Mystic 
Tie, and shall ever revere and cherish his name as one of 
the brightest ornaments of our Order, while there is a link 
of that chain remaining, which binds the brotherhood to- 

*The property of St. Johns' Lodge, No. 1, of this city, of which IIexry Cl.\y 
was an honorary member. 




rnT!i'.ii»iti- 



itciii-jlClqlj. 



C-Tt.'iS^^^a^^ 



gether with a sincere afTection. And tlicn too, he was an 
old man — this enunciation is startling. Heney Clay 
old! Could we realize the fact! — the silver cord was 
loosening, yet we saw no wavering of mind, no declension 
of intellectual vigor; but clastic, clear and firm to the last, 
the Godlike spirit struggled to sustain the frail, crumblins: 
tenement which inclosed it. It is true he was beyond us 
in years, yet he seemed to grow with our growth, and to 
feel as we felt, so that we could not perceive that his 
majestic frame gave evidence of declining years. 

Then, in speaking of him, we would call him Henry 
Clay — Harry of the ^''est — Mill Boy. These familiar ex- 
pressions indicate a companionship which bring others 
upon a level with ourselves, and are used toward those 
who are younger, or of our own age, consequently we 
schooled ourselves to look upon him as one of us. Alas it 
is true, he was physically an old man — he was born in the 
midst of our rcvolutionaiy struggle, rocked in its cradle, 
and nurtured into manhood by the Goddess of Liberty. 
He was a brilliant link which bound the present genera- 
tion to the birth of our National Independence. 

He has gone ! The crumbling tenement has fallen — the 
spirit is released. The voice which aroused a nation is 
hushed in death. His manly form lies mouldering in the 
silent tomb; but the soul, the immortal soul, has taken its 
everlasting flight and returned to the God who gave it, 
there to possess its beatific enjoyments. We have but 
his memory left. It shall flourish — fresh and perennial — 
its home, the heart of every true Mason. 

At the close of the address, M. W. Wm. H. Milxor, Esq., 
P. G. M., offered the following preamble and resolutions, 
which were unanimously adopted : 

167 




lilllll 

Wiiiiijii'iiiiBli'i,F.-i 3g 



p Oh§ai][\u§, of 



IJ iUUI'Hl 



Whereas, It has pleased the Supreme Architect, to call 
from his earthly labors, our illustrious brother Henry 
Clay, in a ripe old age, full of honors, and with mind un- 
shaken, it is meet and proper, that we, his brethren, should 
render to his memory the tribute of our love. We leave to 
others, who, laying aside all party feeling, and forgetting 
all sectional difficulties, are clustering around his bier, to 
eulogize him as a statesman, wise and enlightened, a pa- 
triot, pure and incorruptible. "We would, in humble sub- 
mission to the Divine will, approach as Masons, and cast a 
chaplet upon his tomb, a tribute to his many virtues, as 
a brother of the Mystic Tie. 

Distinguished for truthfulness of character which de- 
spised petty intrigue and deceit, for gentleness of deport- 
ment, which won the love of high and low — for charity of 
heart, which embraced all within its circle, — he lived a pure 
minded and consistent Mason, and leaves us a bright ex- 
ample of what a true Mason should be. 

Resolved, That in fulfillment of these views, and as an ex- 
pression of the regard which this Grand Lodge feels for 
our deceased brother, the Lodges within this jurisdiction 
be clothed in the emblems of mourning for ninety days. 

Resolved, That we sympathize with the aged widow and 
family of our deceased brother, and trust that that strength, 
which comcth only from above, will be vouchsafed them. 

Resolved, That a carefully engrossed copy of the address 
of the R. W. Deputy Grand Master, together with the pre- 
amble and resolutions, be sent to the family of our late 
brother Henry Clay. 

At a subsequent meeting of the Grand Lodge, a commu- 
nication was received from the Committee on Invitation, 
soliciting the Masonic fraternity to unite with the Com- 
ics 



tfcni\ti Cipy. 



luon Council and the citizens of New York in solemnizini>- 
the obsequies of tlie illustrious deceased. Whereupon the 
following resolutions were adopted: 

Resolved, Tliat this Grand Lodge accept the invitation 
of the Committee of the Common Council, and will cor- 
dially participate in the obsequies on the 20tli inst., in 
testimony of respect to the memory of our distinguished 
brother Henry Clay, and that the R. W. Grand Secreta- 
ry be directed to communicate the same to the Committee 
of Arrangements of the Common Council. 

Resolved, That a committee of ten be appointed, with 
power, to make every necessary arrangement for carrying 
the foregoing resolution into effect. 

The Grand Lodge again assembled on the 20th, at one 
o'clock, when the procession was formed, in Masonic order, 
under direction of the Grand Marshal, R. W. Wm. H. 
Underhill, and his aids. The Grand officers appeared 
in full regalia, enshrouded with the emblems of mourning; 
the Officers of Lodges with their ricli regalia and jewels, 
and the brethren clothed with white aprons and gloves; 
the whole presenting an imposing and beautiful appear- 
ance. The procession then moved, preceded by the 
Grand Lodge banner, which was heavily draped in mourn- 
ing, and a very full and efficient band of music, to the posi- 
tion assigned them in the line, at the head of the civic 
bodies, and after passing through the whole route, return- 
ed to the Lodge room, when the Grand Lodge was closed 
in due form. 

JOSEPH D. EVANS, 
Deputy Grand Master. 

James W. Powell, M. D., 

Grand Secretary. 



nTranriiHi, 



NEW YORK STATE SOCIETY OF CINCINNATI. 




!II",^-"'IM"'.M1" >••« I'i'»".l Ili'illl"""! 



(9ii^e()ines of 




Gentlemen : — The Cincinnati Society accepts your in- 
vitation to be present and unite with the Common Council 
and citizens of New York, in solemnizing the obsequies of 
the late Hon, Henry Clay, and I inclose you the order 
for assembling the members of the Society for the above 
purpose, which I have issued as their president. 

I am, gentlemen, 

Very respectfully, 

Your ob't servant, 

ANTHONY LAMB. 

Messrs. Wesley Sjiith, William J. Brisley, Jon. Trotter. 

General Order, New York State Society of Cincin- 
nati. — The Committee appointed by the Honorable the 
Common Council of this city, to make arrangements for 
solemnizing the obsequies of the late Hon. Henry Clay, 
on the 20th inst., have invited our Society to be present on 
that occasion, to unite with the Common Council and cit- 
izens of New York in this testimony of respect to the 
illustrious dead. 

And, as it is our duty, as descendants of the patriots of 
the Revolution, to testify our respect for the memory of 
this illustrious statesman, who has rendered such important 
services to the nation; therefore, 

The members of the Society will assemble at the City 
Hall, on Tuesday, the 20th inst., at 12 o'clock, with the 
usual badge of mourning, for the aforesaid purpose. 

Gen. ANTHONY LAMB, 

President. 
Edward P. Marcellin, Secretary. 

170 





Hon. J. W. Beekman, in some brief and touching re- 
marks, brought to the notice of the Society the death of 
the Hon. Henry Clay, an honorary member of this Soci- 
ety, and moved the appointment of a Committee to take 
suitable measures for testifying the sense of the members 
of the Society in regard to tliat melancholy event. The 
Chair appointed the following gentlemen as such commit- 
tee: Hon. James W. Beekman, Charles King, LL. D., 
and J. R. Brodhead, Esq. 

At the next meeting, the Hon. James W. Beekman, from 
the Committee, appointed to prepare resolutions in memo- 
ry of Henry Clay, a member of the New York Histori- 
cal Society, in presenting their report, said: 

Since the June meeting of the Society, death had stricken 
down several of the chiefest among its members. During 
the summer recess, Henry Clay has ceased from among 
men, and a name, which has long thrilled every American 
bosom with pride and love, has become a name of history. 

What can I tell you of Henry Clay that is not already 
known by heart by us all ? — of the man who had rather 
be right than be President; who, everywhere and under 
all circumstances, loved his country first and himself last; 
who grappled, at the very beginning of his public actions, 
in 1797, with that most unpopular, yet most important of 
sul)jects, negro slavery — exposing its evils, and, at every 
hazard to himself, striving to root it out of the soil of Ken- 

171 



mmuu 



tucky ; — who founded the Colonization Society, and never 
spared an effort to mitigate the hugest evil that threatens 
his country. 

I might remind the Society of Mr. Clay's successful ef- 
forts in the legislature of Kentucky, to preserve the Com- 
mon Law to her courts of justice. An attempt, well nigh 
successful, was made to prohibit reference to any prece- 
dents of the British Reports in legal proceedings. Four- 
iifths of the Assembly wished Kentucky removed as far 
from Great Britain in jurisprudence as in geography. 
Mr. Clay saw the importance of this outbreak of preju- 
dice, and its danger to the Commonwealth, and turned the 
tide of ignorance and passion by his single might. His 
control over his auditory was most absolute and astonish- 
ing. Holding the rough backwoodsmen in rapt astonish- 
ment, — now bathing them in tears, and now convulsing 
them with laughter; and all about mere dry disquisitions 
on the Common Law. When he concluded, says an eye- 
witness, scarce a vestige of opposition remained. 

The eloquence of Clay was not merely the oratory of 
ancient Greece, that '• swayed the fierce democracy at will;" 
but was as powerful in debate as before a popular assem- 
bly. On one occasion pre-eminently he measured weapons 
with Webster. Both were in their prime. In 182J:, the tarifi" 
was once more before Congress. Clay advocated amend- 
ments which Webster opposed. Then were wars such as 
giants wage. The eloquence of Webster was described 
as the majestic roar of a strong and steady blast, pealing 
through the forest; but that of Clay was like the tones of 
a celestial harp, — sometimes thrilled as by angel's fingers, 
and swept anon as by the furies of the storm. Mr. Web- 
ster was defeated, and, by the close vote of 107 to 102, 




tfei)i-<jeii|ij. 






M l'"!IM. 



Clay vindicated his American System, and established it 
as the policy of the country for many years. 

Twice Mr. Clay, under Providence, was the means of 
averting dire calamities. Once in 1821, he accompanied 
the Missouri Compromise, with such personal toil and anx- 
iety as well nigh cost his life. Again, in 1850, when the 
series of national measures, which great men of all parties 
in Congress labored to accomplish, were on the anvil, 
Henry Clay was foremost in the work. Here he laid 
down his life; for it is not too much to say that in his old 
age the night long labors of the forum wore him out. 
Striving for his country, compromising every thing but 
honor for her good, he fell; — not the less glorious because 
he fell — not on the battle field, but on that intellectual 
arena where Americans decide the destiny of their nation 
by the contest of minds, as they remedy their grievances 
by the arbitrament of the ballot-box. To the statesman, 
far more fitly than to the warrior, apply the Roman words: 

" Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori." 

On behalf of the committee charged with that duty, I re- 
spectfully submit for adoption by the Society, the following 
resolutions : 

Resolved, That while the whole people of the United 
States mourn the death of Henry Clay as a national be- 
reavement, the New York Historical Society laments it as 
the loss of one of its most honored members. 

Resolved, Tliat the life of Henry Clay, the orator, the 
advocate, the ambassador, the statesman, ever devoted to 
his country's service, and shortened by his ardent labors 
in times of her extremity, presents, for imitation in after 
days, a rare pattern of lofty intellect and a noble heart. 

173 



0l3se(]i|ie3 of 



i!i:i!iwM 



ura 



Resolved, That although the State of New York might 
well adopt the words of one of her own eminent sons, " I 
envy Kentucky, for when he dies she will have his ashes;" 
the memory of Clay and the record of his great deeds are 
of the world, and his fame finds its materials in the ar- 
chives of universal history. 

Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions, duly attested 
by the seal of the Society, and signed by the President and 
Secretary, be transmitted to the family of the deceased. 

Eev. F. L. Hawks, D.D,, LL.D., said, he was unwilling 
that the question should be taken without saying a few 
words; and he did so, not in the hope that he could add any- 
thing to the reputation of the illustrious Henky Clay, but 
because he knew him intimately, and bore many recollec- 
tions which endeared his memory. He was, indeed, a won- 
derful man. His extraordinary power of eloquence, was 
natural; it resulted from the strong feelings of a warm and 
honest heart. This was the secret of the hold he pos- 
sessed over those who knew him. He ever had their af- 
fection. He had said that he could not add to the glory of 
his name ; but there was one feature in his character to 
which he might properly call the notice of Americans. 
There were those in other lands who asserted, and were 
willing to believe, that religious feeling was eminently de- 
fective in this country, and they would improve it by in- 
troducing the system existing among themselves, of making 
religion rest upon legislative enactments, more than upon 
our reason and honest convictions. Now, he believed that 
our fathers who emigrated hither, were at least as religious 
as any equal number they left behind them; they laid their 
foundations in religion — it was the basis of their subsequent 



tfeoi-yGl^y. 



I'iil'.l M.. 



t.T?£i^ 



prosperity. This religious feeling exercised a large influ- 
ence, and was the cause of the order which prevailed, gen- 
erally, in this country, shown in the quiet submission to 
law, and acquiescence in the will of the majority. Occa- 
sional outbreaks among twenty-three millions of people, 
were of course to be expected, but they certainly furnished 
exceptions to the rule, not the rule itself. He would illus- 
trate by a single historical fact. Upon our acquisition of 
territory on the shores of the Pacific, they could remember 
how quickly people from all parts of the Union hastened 
to the new found El Dorado. Many of these came from 
parts of the country widely separate, and were different in 
manners — knowing nothing of each other, but this, that 
they had the privilege of being Americans, and under a 
free constitution. In an incredibly short time, before the 
general government could interpose to furnish them, they 
formed a plan of government for themselves — moved there- 
to by the habits of order in which they had been trained, 
(and religious habits were at the bottom of it) they formed 
a constitution, and established order. Now, take an equal 
number of men of any other part of the earth, and place 
them under such circumstances, and he felt assured that 
anarchy and confusion would have been the result. This 
fact showed that they possessed sufficient religious feeling 
to know that God willed order, and they acted on it. Now, 
the feature to which he had alluded, was the religious close 
of Mr. Clay's life. Here was one of our greatest states- 
nien — one who guided public opinion in a large degree — 
one over whom his countrymen literally wept, and who, 
was perhaps more personally beloved than any other ser- 
vant of the republic; and what was the closing scene? 
Why, as his mind ran over the events of his honored and 

175 






'■y Oh$CL]i\us of 



oiniiuiiiii. 



eSsSZ 



useful life, bright as they were, he could but feel that the 
last was the brightest. He died as a Christian; and Amer- 
ica could say of this one of her noblest son?, that he had 
so lived that his country could honor him, and fo died, that 
selfishness only could regret his departure to hr.ppiness. 

Rev. Dr. Van Pelt also, in a few eloquent remarks, al- 
luded to the character, virtues, and especially to the reli- 
gious feelings of the illustrious deceased. 



SOCIETY OF CINCINNATI, MASS. 

A meeting of the Massachusetts' State Society of 
Cincinnati, was convened for the purpose of expressing 
their sympathy for the loss the nation had sustained in 
the death of Henry Clay, and of manifesting their high 
appreciation of the character of the honorable deceased. 
After the object of the meeting being stated by the Presi- 
dent, it was voted that Franklin Pierce, Charles S. 
Davies and Col. Secor, be a committee to report resolu- 
tions on the death of Henry Clay. 

The Committee, by their Chairman, after a beautiful 
speech from Gen. Pierce, on the resolutions, made their 
report. 

Resolved, That the Society of the Cincinnati of Massa- 
chusetts, in common with the people of this entire country, 
deeply deplore the death of the Hon. Henry Clay, and 
that as in life, his brilliant genius and ardent patriotism 
have commanded universal admiration, so in death, the 
grateful memory of his eminent services in the councils of 
the nation, for almost half of a century, will be sacredly 
cherished while the Union shall endure. 

17fi 



JiilUfflU 



/ ]fei)i\i| t;in||. '' 



M'l till. 




Resolved, That the foregoing resolution be forwarded 
by the President to the widow of the great statesman and 
patriot, with the Society's sincerest sympathy. 

Adams Bailey, Secretary. 



TO THE CITIZENS OF HOBOKEN. 

Whereas, By the dispensation of an all-wise Providence, 
the greatest statesman, the purest patriot and the most elo- 
quent civilian of the age, who by his devoted services for 
more than half a century has endeared himself to the peo- 
ple, and commands the admiration of the world, was re- 
moved from our midst on the 29th of June last, and 

Whereas, We deeply sympathize with the great Whig 
party of the United States, under the irreparable loss it 
has sustained by the death of its illustrious advocate, the 
Hon. Henry Clay, whose public obsequies have been ar- 
ranged to take place in the city of New York, on Tuesday, 
the 20th inst.; therefore, be it 

Resolved, That we condole with our fellow-citizens, un- 
der this great affliction, and earnestly request that, as far 
as practicable, they close their places of business, and sus- 
pend their labors on that day, and also drape their houses 
and public buildings in mourning. 

Resolved, That cannon be fired every five minutes during 
the movement of the procession, in Hoboken, and the 
church bells be tolled for two hours. 

Resolved, That the members of the Committee wear crape 
on the left arm for two weeks, as a token, of respect; and 
that they will meet at the Town Hall, (except they are 
engaged with the military,) one hour before the time ar- 



12 



177 




'' 0bse()iiies of 



Mmii. 



ransred for the formation of the line, with those of our cit- 
izens who wish to join in the cortege. Also, 

Resolved, That we cordially invite all our citizens, with- 
out distinction of party, to meet with us at the time and 
place designated, and assist us in paying a last tribute to 
departed worth. 

Whig Executive Committee. 
Isaac V. Brower, Hazelton Walkly, 

David M. Demarest, James Stevenson, 
William Mitchell. 

JOHN M. BOARD, Chairman. 
John W. Van Boskerck, Secretary. 



iS^ 




FIRE DEPARTMENT. 

Special meeting of Engineers and Foremen, held at Fire- 
men's Hall, on Thursday evening, July 15th, 1852, Alfred 
Carson, Esq., Chief Engineer, in the chair. Roll called, 
and ninety-one officers present. 

The chairman having stated that he had called the meet- 
ing for the purpose of laying before them the joint resolu- 
tion, as passed the Common Council of the city of New 
York, extending an invitation to the Fire Department to 
participate in the funeral obsequies to the late Hon. 
Henry Clay. 

On motion, the invitation was accepted, and the Chief 
and Assistant Engineers were appointed a committee to 
make the necessary arrangements. 

ALFRED CARSON, Cliief Engineer. 
Jesse Thomas, Secretary. 

178 




iK'i]l'ijCii^i) 



tiiii'i.. 




I.O. OF O.F. 

City of New York, July 17th, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — your invitation, on the part of the Hon- 
orable the Common Council, addressed to the Grand 
Lodge of Southern New York, to unite with the citizens 
of New York, in solemnizing the obsequies of the late 
Hon. Henry Clay, and paying a last testimony of respect 
to the illustrious deceased, was received on Thursday, the 
l")th inst. A special meeting of the G. L. was convened 
last evening, and after a full interchange of opinion be- 
tween its members, it was generally concurred in, that 
owing to the short time allowed for the necessary arrange- 
ments, together with the engagements entered into by many 
of its members to turn out with other bodies, it would be 
impossible to get a suQicient number of the members to- 
gether, to make our turn-out, a " testimony of respect." 
Under these circumstances, the Grand Lodge has no alter- 
native, though it is with the deepest regret, but most re- 
spectfully decline the invitation so kindly tendered. 

Yours respectfully, 

JOHN J. DAVIES, Gra7id Secretary. 



AMERICAN INSTITUTE, 

At a regular meeting of the American Institute, the fol- 
lowing resolutions were unanimously adopted : 

Resolved, That the members of the American Institute 
have heard of the death of the Hon. Henry Clay, of Ken- 
tucky, with feelings of the deepest regret, and desire to 
unite their sympathies with their countrymen throughout 




*'' (9 N set) q 163 of 



the Union, in deploring the loss our most eminent staies- 
man. 

Resolved, That it is peculiarly appropriate for the Amer- 
ican Institute, an association formed for the purpose of 
promoting national industry, to cherish the memory of the 
great champion of the American System. 

Resolved, That the members of this Institute remember, 
with feelings of gratification, the early visits to, and the 
deep interest manifested by Mr. Clay, in the welfare of 
this association, of which he was one of the oldest hon- 
orary members, and desire on this occasion to express their 
heart-felt testimony to the long continued public services; 
the purity of the motives, and the exalted patriotism which 
distinguished the life and career of the departed senator. 

Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be forwarded 
to the family of Mr. Clay. 

ROBERT LOVETT, Vice Presiderit. 

Heney Meigs, Recording Secretary. 



NEW YORK TYPOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY. 

At a regular meeting of this Society, the following pre- 
amble and resolutions were adopted : 

Whereas, Our country has been bereft of one of her 
purest patriots and wisest statesmen, in the loss of Henry 
Clay, whose name and history are so dear and sacred to 
us all; therefore. 

Resolved, That the members of the New York Typo- 
graphical Society would mournfully mingle their feelings 
of sorrow with their fellow-citizens throughout the Union, 
and attest their sense of respect for the illustrious dead, by 
placing upon their records this mark of esteem for the 



IfeO 



mt^ 







memory of him who "knew no north, no south, no cast, no 
west," nothing but his country. 

Resolved, That a copy of the foregoing resolutions 1)C 
transmitted to the family of the lamented deceased. 

DANIEL GODWIN, President pro tem. 
E. M. Skidmore, Secretary. 



ORDER OF UNITED AMERICANS. 

The Grand Chancery of the Order of United Americans 
was called together by the Grand Sachem, to make the 
necessary arrangements for participating in the solemnities 
of the 20th of July. 

The G. C. of the C. then read the following communica- 
tion from the Grand Sachem : 

New York, July 12, 1852. 
To the Honorable the Chancery, State of JVew York: 

It has become my painful duty to inform you, officially, 
of the death of one of our country's most distinguished and 
honored sons, the better portion of whose life has been de- 
voted to her service, and the loss of whom our common 
country mourns as truly a national calamity. 

Henry Clay is dead ! 

He closed his active and eventful life at the city of 
Washington, on Tuesday, the 29th day of June last. His 
remains, in charge of a Congressional Committee, passed 
through our city to its final resting-place, at Ashland, and 
rested here, at the Governor's Room, City Hall, on the an- 
niversary of our national birthday. 

The Common Council of our city have resolved to per- 
form the obsequies to his memory by a military and civic 

181 



M^ 



l .i ll ll ll il l .MJI.Ii l l. l i l i.Hliii 'l iUli. Bffi'BTS 



EHiE 



I9bsi'c)i|ic8 of 



procession, on the 20th of the present month, as a fitting 
testimonial of the love and respect of a free people for the 
memory of one of such exalted patriotism, and who has 
rendered our country such distinguished and valuable ser- 
vice. I make this official announcement, trusting that 
your honorable body will take such measures for the par- 
ticipation by our patriotic Order in the solemnities of that 
occasion, as in your wisdom may seem proper. 

W. W. OSBORN, Grand Sachem. 

After the communication was read, it was 

Resolved, That this Chancery will unite, in its official 
capacity, with the Common Council and our fellow-citizens 
in the obsequies to the late Henry Clay, and that the 
several Chapters, under this jurisdiction, and our brethren 
of other States, be invited to join with us on that occasion. 

New York, July 15th, 1852. 

Dear Sir : — The Order of United Americans having 
appointed a committee to make arrangements for uniting 
with the Honorable the Common Council in obsequies to 
the honor of the late Henry Clay, I have the honor to 
solicit from your Committee the usual place assigned to 
our order on previous occasions of this nature, in the line 
of procession. 

Our number will probably amount to about two thou- 
sand men, making all allowance for those that may be 
drawn off in the ranks of the military and fire department. 

Your ob't servant, 

THOS. R. WHITNEY, 

Chairman Com. of Arrangements. 




Alderman Willia:\i M. Tweed. 



182 




.»,»aa,.B!Ti 



if cn l\(i Ciq(f. '' 



NATIONAL ACADEMY OF DESIGN. 



Gentlemen : — I have the honor to inform you, that at a 
special meeting of our academicians, associates, lionorary 
members and students, and of the artists generally, the 
national bereavement in the decease of that eminent and 
beloved statesman and citizen, the Hon. Henry Clay, was 
communicated, and resolutions were entered upon our jour- 
nals, expressive of an exalted admiration of liis matchless 
genius; of our gratitude for his long and unrivalled public 
services, and of an earnest sympathy witli the sorrowino- 
millions of our countrvmen. 

We subsequently united with the Common Council and 
the people of our city, in the last tribute of respect to the 
illustrious dead. 

Your obedient servant, 

T. ADDISON RICHARDS, 

Cor. Secretary, JV. Ji, 

To the Committee of Arrangements on the obsequies of the 
late Henry Clay. 



New York, July 14th, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I am instructed by the Clay Festival As 
sociation, to notify your Honorable Body, that the Asso 
ciation intend to take part and participate in the ceremo- 
nies of the 20th inst. 

Please to communicate, if convenient, what position, or 
place, will be designated for the Association in the pro- 
cession. 



Respectfully, your ob't servant, 

M. R. BREWER, President 

To the Committee of Arrangements. 



183 




ObscOifies of 



irmnunTTi: 



Newburg, July 15, 1852. 

Dear Sir : — Having seen by the^papers that you intend 
to honor the memory of the illustrious Henry Clay, by 
a funeral procession, in your city, on the 20th inst. A 
meeting of the Clay Club was called for last evening, at 
the Orange Hotel, for the purpose of making suitable ar- 
rangements to participate in the honor of paying respect 
to the greatest of statesmen. Among other proceedings 
the following was had : 

Resolved, That the Clay Club, of Newburg, attend the 
funeral obsequies of the Hon. Henry Clay, on Tuesday 
next, and that the Chairman be requested to communicate 
with the Chairman of the Board of Aldermen, informing; 
him of the passage of the resolution, and also requesting a 
place in the procession on that mournful occasion. 

I am, with great respect, 
Yours, &c., 

E. D. KEMP, Chairman. 

R. T. CoMrro.v, Esq., President Board of Aldermen. 



Port Wardens' Office, 
July 15, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — I have the honor herewith to hand you a 
copy of the minutes of the Board of Port Wardens, and 
also to acknowledge the receipt of your polite note of the 
llth inst. 

Very respectfully, 

Your ob'dt servant, 

W. W. STORY, Master Warden. 

Messrs. "Wesley Smith, VVm. J. Brisley, J.\o. Trotter, Committee. 

1S4 





J,^m.^.-,..m.- 



mrmTiiiuM., 



Poet Wardens' Office, 
July 15, 1852. 

Resolved, That this Board, entertaining the highest re- 
gard for the great public services of the late Hon. Henry 
Clay, will unite with the Honorable the Common Council, 
in testifjnng their respect to his memory, and will attend 
in a body on the 20th inst. 

Resolved, That a copy of the above resolution be fur- 
nished the Committee of Arrangements, signed by the Mas- 
ter Warden and Clerk of this Board. 

[Copy of minutes.] 

TT. W. STORY, Master Warden, 
Robert T. Norris, Cle7-k. 



cadets of temperance. 

New York, July 14, 1852. 

Gentlemen : — In accordance with your request, the 
Mount Yernon Section, No. 1, Cadets of Temperance, of 
this city, herewith express to you their wish to unite in 
the ceremonies of the obsequies of the late Hon. Henry 
Clay, to be held on the 20th inst. We presume our po- 
sition in the line will be noticed in the programme of the 
day. 

Yours, very respectfully, 

JOSEPH T. REED, 

Chairman Com. of Arrangements. 

To the Special Committee of the Common Council 
on the obsequies of Honorable Henry Clay. 

is,3 





(9H,^i.'tU|jes of 




mechanics' section, no. 2. 

New Yoek, July 17, 1852. 

In accordance with the request of the Special Commit- 
tee of the Common Council, the Mechanics' Section, No. 2, 
of the Order of Cadets of Temperance, of the State of New 
York, hereby give notice of their wish to participate in 
the funeral obsequies of the late Hon. Heney Clay, on 
Tuesday next, and that they wish to be assigned a place 
in the line with Mount Yernon Section, No. 1, Cadets of 
Temperance. 

Respectfully, 

CHARLES PAYNTON, 

Chairman. 

To tlie Committee of Arrangements, funeral obsequies of Henry Clay, 



YOUNG MEN'S DEBATING SOCIETY. 

The Young Men's Debating Society of the city of New 
York, most respectfully notify your honorable Committee 
that we have made all the necessary preparations, and de- 
sire joining in the mournful pageant on the 20th inst. 

Therefore, any position which you may be pleased to 
assign us in the procession, will be gratefully acceded to. 

Yours, most respectfully, 

THOMAS J. MUNDAY, 

Chairman of Committee of Arrangements. 

To Committee on Civic Societies and Associations. 

1S6 




f 



1 1 C >l )' 



r i;||| 



Your Committee embrace this opportunity of tcnderiuo- 
tlieir sincere acknowledgments to the officers and mem- 
bers of the First Division, New York State Militia, also, to 
tlie officers and members of the various companies from 
adjacent cities, for their prompt and efficient services upon 
this melancholy occasion. This great arm of protection 
to our national institutions paraded in such immense 
numbers, as at once to establish their high appreciation 
of the character of the illustrious deceased, and to com- 
mand the gratitude of the Common Council of New York, 
and the admiration of the whole country. 

The following orders of the various companies, were 
laid before the Committee, from the 

MILITAKY DEPARTMENT. 



first ilibisioit, Peto ^)arli f t;ttt |!liliti:i» 

DIVISION ORDERS. 

New Yoek, July 15th, 1852. 

This Division will parade on Tuesday next, the 20th of 
July instant, for the purpose of uniting with the public 
authorities and our fellow-citizens, in rendering funeral 
honors to the late lamented Hexry Clay. 

The Division line will be formed on Broadway, the left 
resting on Chambers street, at half-past 2 o'clock, p. m., 
precisely. 

Brigadier General Spicer will detail a suitable detach- 
ment from his command, to fire minute-guns from the Bat- 

187 




mmi 



^- 



tery during the procession, and will make requisition upon 
the Commissary General for the necessary ammunition. 

Brigadier General Hall will direct a troop of horse for 
escort duty, to report to the Major General, at his quar- 
ters, at two o'clock ; and a troop of horse for guard duty, 
to the Division Inspector, upon the Parade ground, at the 
same hour. 

Broadway, from Chambers street to Astor place, is des- 
ignated as the Parade ground of the Division, from two 
o'clock, p. M. until the commencement of the procession. 

Commandants of Regiments will send their standard 
and camp colors to the City Hall, on Monday next, at 
eight o'clock, a. M.,to be draped with appropriate emblems 
of mourning, under the direction of the Committee of Ar- 
rangements. 

Officers will wear the usual badges of mourning upon 
their left arm and sword-hilt. 

The Division Staff will assemble at the quarters of the 
Major General, at two o'clock, p. m. 

Commandants of Brigades, Regiments and Companies, 
are directed to report, and return to court martial, the 
names of any officers, non-commissioned officers, or pri- 
vates, who may leave the ranks during the parade, with- 
out the permission of their officers. 

By order of 

CHAS. W. SANDFORD, 
Maj. Gen. Commanding. 

R. C. Wetmore, Division Inspector. 

188 





'' .1 t'iM'ii t l;i(| 




|irst §iig;iit,c, IJciu goiii .^tiitc p.iliti;L 

BRIGADE ORDERS. 

New York, July 15th, 1852. 

The foregoing Division orders arc promulgated for the 
information and government of this Brigade, and, in com- 
pliance therewith, 

This Brigade will parade on Tuesday next, the 20th July, 
inst., for the purpose of rendering funeral honors to the 
late Hon. Henry Clay. 

The Brigade line will be formed on the Fifth avenue, 
right on Washington Parade ground, at half past one 
o'clock, p. M., precisely. 

The Veteran Corps of Artillery, Capt. Eaynor, is here- 
by detailed to fire minute-guns from the Battery during the 
procession. Capt. Raynor will make requisition on the 
Commissary General for the necessary ammunition. 

The Brigade Staff will assemble at the quarters of the 
Brigadier General, at one o'clock, precisely. 

By order of 

CHARLES B. SPICER, 

Brigadier General. 
C. H. Smith, Acting Brigade Maj. 



f birli §rig;ih, ^Icto ^ork .^tate HlilitiiL 




Obsequies of 




BRIGADE ORDERS, 

New York, July 1-^tli, 1852. 

This Brigade will parade in full uinform, in compliance 
with the above Division order. The line will be formed at 
2 o'clock, p. M., precisely, on Broadway, east side, right 
resting on Walker street. The Staff will meet at the Gen- 
eral's quarters, at quarter before 2 o'clock, p. m. 

By order, 

WILLIAM HALL, 

Brigadier General. 



f aiuilr |Ui(iah, Helu fioiii .§tiite Militiit. 

BRIGADE ORDERS. 

New York, July loth, 1852. 

Pursuant to Division orders of this date, this Brigade 
will parade on Tuesday next, the 20th of July, instant, for 
the purpose of uniting with the public authorities and our 
fellow-citizens, in rendering funeral honors to the lamented 
Henry Clay. 

The Brigade line will be formed on Broadway, the left 
on Chambers street, at two o'clock, p. m. 

Commandants of Regiments will send their standards 
and camp colors to the City Hall, on Monday next, at 8 
o'clock, A. M., to be dressed in mourning. 

Officers will wear the usual badges of mourning upon 
their left arm and sword hilt. 

190 




tfeoi-y Gi^y. 



The Brigade Staff will assemble at the quarters of the 
Brigadier General, at half-past one o'clock, p. m. 

Commandants of Regiments and Companies are direct- 
ed to report, and return to court martial, the names of any 
officers, non-commissioned officers, or privates, who may 
leave the ranks during the parade, without the permission 
of their officers. 

By order of 

JOHN EWEN, 

Brig. Gen. Commanding. 
E. J. Hawley, Act. Aid-de-Camp. 




€\]u\ ivrgiiiiriit; jtim -^^nrk Itatr 3^Hlitin. 

REGIMENTAL ORDER. 

New York, July 16th, 1852. 

In compliance with Division and Brigade orders, this 
Regiment will parade, mounted, and in full uniform, on 
Tuesday, the 20th inst., at one o'clock, p. m., to participate 
in the funeral solemnities of the late Hon. Hexry Clay. 

The line will be formed on Fifth avenue, left on Fif- 
teenth street. 

The usual badges of mourning, will be worn. Troops 
will join in squadrons, at half-past one o'clock. 

By order of 

WILLIAM MENCK, 

Lieut. Col. Com. 
H. H. Gunter, Adjutant. 

E. Lyon, Serg. Major. 





fenfl.WiflW.'.f 1 1 ,11. T i Mimmff: 



0bsij(^i|ie3 of. 



.fniirtij lUgiiimit, Mm fnrlt ItntuHilitiii. 




REGIMENTAL ORDER. 

New York, July IGth, 1852. 

Pursuant to Division and Brigade orders, this Regiment 
will parade as Cavalry and Light Artillery, (Artillery in 
white pantaloons,) on Tuesday, the 20th July, instant. 

The line will be formed in Broadway, opposite Union 
square, left on Fifteenth street, at 1 o'clock, p. m. 

Officers will wear the usual badges of mourning on the 
left arm and sword hilt. 

By order of 

CHAS. YATES, Colo7iel. 

N. Coles, Adjutant. 

H. Smith, Serg. Major. 



a>' 



ixtji ilrgiiimit, lim {hxk ItntB 3Hilitiii. 



REGIMENTAL ORDER. 

New Yoek, July 15th, 1852. 

The Brigade orders are hereby promulgated for the in- 
formation and government of this command. 

It is becoming in citizens of all classes and professions 
to mourn the loss of a great and good man, especially one 
so highly esteemed, and possessing so thoroughly the re- 
spect and admiration of his countrymen, as Henry Clay. 
The authorities of our city having appointed Tuesday, the 
20th inst., to do honor to the memory of the illustrious 
deceased; for the purpose of joining the solemnities of this 

1!)2 





mournful occasion, pursuant to Division and Brigade or- 
ders, tliis Regiment will parade on tliat day, fully uniform- 
ed and equipped — white pants (without knapsack,) and 
with the usual badge of mourning. Line will be formed in 
Broome street, right on Crosby, at half-past one o'clock, 
r. M. Commandants of companies will report their re- 
spective commands to the Adjutant fifteen minutes pre- 
vious to that time, also the non-commissioned stall". The 
band, color-bearer and general guides will report to Cap- 
tain Gregory, at the Mercer House, at a quarter before 
one o'clock, p. m. 

Field and Staff will report to the commanding officer, 
on the Parade ground, at quarter past one o'clock, P. M. 
By order of 

JOHN G. WELLSTOOD, 



Lieut. Col. Cojnd^c^. 



Wm. Chalmers, Adjutant. 



€m\\\\} lUgiinrnt; Jinn |''nrk Itntt 3Hilitiii. 

REGIMENTAL ORDER. 

New York, July, 16th, 1852. 

The above Brigade orders are promulgated for the use 
of the Regiment. 

In obedience, the regiment will assemble in Chambers 
street, right resting on West Broadway, on Tuesday next, 
the 20th inst., fully armed and equipped, at half-past one 
o'clock, P. M., at which hour the regimental line will be 
formed. 

Adjutant Stearns will sec that the standards and camp 

13 lf»;} 




^^-g^^ 



©Nscfiqies of 



''i:i'.l ; 



^ 



colors of the regiment are sent to the City Hall, on Mon- 
day morning next, at 8 o'clock, to be draped in mourning. 

The Court of Appeals, for the above parade, will be 
held at the Mercer House, on 29th of August next, at 8 
o'clock, p. M. Commandants of companies will make 
their returns within ten days after the parade. 

By order of 

H. G. STEBBINS, Colonel. 
Cornelius Carxes, Serg. Major. 



|io;irb of glarslials, 

New York, July IGth, 1852. 

At a meeting of the Board of Marshals for the funer al 
obseciuies of the late Hon. Henry Clay, held at the 
Mayor's office on the evening of the loth, the following 
bill of dress was adopted : 

Black coat and pants, with white vest. 

Chapeau, .without ornament, trimmed with crape. 

Scarf- — black satin, trimmed with crape. 

Crape knot on left arm. 

Dress sword, scabbard covered with black velvet, and 
hilt with crape mourning knot. 

Black body-belt worn over the coat. 

Light spurs. 

Black saddle cloth, trimmed with deep fringe, and cord 
festooned in front. 

Russet bridle, with black fringe, and crape knot on the 
foretop and nose piece. 

Black kid gloves. 




rinT'nTritTT:r 




Baton — white, with gilt balls on the ends, trimmed with 
black crape. 

The following articles will be furnished b}^ the Com- 
]nittce of the Common Council. 

The scarf, gloves, sword mountings and baton. The 
use of horse equipments and chapeaux. 

Marshals will send their swords, for mounting, to Child 
tfe Wemmell, 31 Park row, immediately on receipt of this 
order. 

They will aho order thoir chapeaux from Mr. Ira Todd, 
178 Broadway. 

Horse equipments will be procured of C. Francis, 30 
Bowery. 

Marshals wishing to nsc their own saddles and cha- 
peaux will cause the saddles to be sent immediately to 
Mr. Francis, to have the saddle-cloth fitted ; and their 
chapeaux to Child & Wemmell to be draped. 

The chapeaux and horse equipments that are furnished, 
will be returned as soon as convenient, after the parade. 

A meeting of the marshals will be held at the Mayor's 
oflice, on Monday, 19th inst., at half-past 7 o'clock, r. m. 

WILLIAM HALL, 

Grand Marshal. 
James F. Hall, Secretary. 



Monday Evening, July 19th, 1852. 

The Board of Marshals met at the Mayor's office, pur- 
suant to previous notice ; the Grand Marshal in the 
chair. 

The minutes of the previous meeting were read and ap- 
proved. 

105 






(9b?e()n«es of 








The Grand Marshal stated the regulations for the pa- 
rade, and assigned the Aids their respective divisions. 

Adjourned to meet at the Grand Marshal's quarters, 
No. 16 White street, at half-past one o'clock, p. m., to- 
morrow. 

WILLIAM HALL, 

Grand Marshal. 
James F. Hall, Secretary. 

OBSEQUIES OF THE LATE HON. HENRY CLAY. 

marshal's order. 

New York, July 20 th, 1852. 
The different orders, societies, associations, &c., in- 
tending to participate in the ceremonies of the day, will 
report to the Aids of the Grand Marshal, on the right of 
the respective divisions, at a quarter-past two o'clock, 
p. M., precisely. Columns will form, six abreast, march 
in close order. Marshals will cause this order to be 
strictly enforced. The aids will assemble at the Grand 
Marshal's quarters. No. 16 White street, at half-past one 

o'clock, p. M. 

By order, 

WILLIAM HALL, 

Grand Marshal. 
John W. Avery, Aid. 



The various sub-committees having completed their ar- 
rangements, and every thing now being in entire readiness 
for solemnizing the obsequies in a manner comporting with 
the character and standing of the deceased, and commen- 
surate with the wealth and dignity of this city, the Com- 
mittee on Programme, assisted by the Grand Marshal, re- 
ported the following 

196 








jlei)i-(|t:>Ht|. '' 




PROGRAMME OF ARRANGEMENTS 

FOR THE 

FUNERAL CEREMONIES 

I.\ IIO-NOR OF THE LATE 

HON. HENRY CLAY 



1 



The Joint Committee, appointed by the Common Council 
of the city of New York, to make the necessary arrange- 
ments for solemnizing the obsequies of the lamented Hexry 
Clay, hare adopted the following Programme of Arrange- 
ments for the occasion. 

GENERAL WILLIAM HALL 

HAS BEEN- UNANIMOUSLY SELECTED AS 

©f tfjc tian, ixiljo fj.is agnointcti tfjc folloiuiiis tjcnllfiurit as ftfs 3it!s. 



WM. L. :morris, 

JOHN \V. AVERY, 
JOHN J. CISCO, 
FREEMAN CAMPBELL, 
MEDAD PLATT, 
J. B. MONTGOMERY, 
A. A. BREMNER, 
JAMES F. HALL, 
SAMUEL OSCiOOD, 
AVM. T. CHILD, 
JOHN A. BUNTING, 
WM. L. MORRIS, Jr., 
WM. B. DINSMORE, 
CLARKSON CROLIUS, 
G. H. STRIKER, 
SAMUEL ROGERS, 
HENRY B. COOK, 
J. J. KELLY, 



ELIJAH F. PURDY, 
ROBERT SMITH, 
WILLIAM DODGE, 
J. C. BURNHAM, 
JAMES CONNER, 
ADAM P. PENTZ, 
JOHN W. STYLES, 
ROBERT B. BOYD, 
JOHN T. OGDEN, 
ERASTUS GROVER, 
WM. H. UNDERHILL, 
SYLVANUS S. WARD, 
Dr. H. F. QUACKENBOSS, 
RUFUS E. CRANE, 

JAMES acker:man, 

G. II. LYNCH, 
JORDAN MOTT, 
R. H. SHANNON. 




197 



innlTTiTinuL.. 



The procession will move from the Park, at 3 p. m., 
precisely, and will proceed down Broadway, around the 
Park to Chatham street, through Chatham street to the 
Bowery, up the Bowery and Fourth avenue to Union 
square ; around Union square to Broadway, and down 
Broadway to the Park, in front of the City Hall, on pass- 
ing which point each division will be under the orders of 
its respective Marshal. 

The solemnities at the Hall, at the close of the proces- 
sion, will be as follows : 

1. Prayer by the Rev. Dr. John M. Krebs. 

2. Funeral Oration, by N. B. Blunt, Esq. 

3. Benediction by the Rev. Dr. Benjamin J. Haight. 

The arrangements of the day will be under the com- 
mand of the Grand Marshal. 

The several persons having charge of the church and 
fire alarm bells in the city, are requested to cause the 
same to be tolled, from the hour of 3 o'clock, p. m., until 
the close of the procession. 

The owners and masters of vessels in the harbor, and 
the proprietors of the various public buildings in the city, 
are requested to display their colors at half mast, from 
sunrise to sunset. 

It is also respectfully requested, that our fellow-citizens 
close their several places of business during the moving 
of the procession. 

They are also requested, whether in the procession or 
not, to wear the usual badge of mourning on the left arm. 

198 





■^^.r:. 



The several orders, societies, associations, trades, and 
other bodies, are requested to assemble at such places as 
they may respectively select, and repair to the places of 
rendezvous, by 2 o'clock, p. M. 

The dififerent divisions, in the following programme, will 
be designated by a white banner, with the appropriate 
number of each in black. 



rp 



ORDER OF PROCESSION. 

fiui Sinisinii. 

Troop of Cavalry, as escort to the Grand Marshal, 
Under command of Capt. Joshua A. Varian. 

GENERAL WILLIAM HALL, 

GRAND marshal. 



Col. John W. Ayery, 
Major James Conner, 
John J. Cisco, Esq., 



Col. William Dodge, 
Freeman Campbell, Esq., 
James F. Hall, Esq. 



special aids. 

first Dibisioit, Hcto g0r!v f t:tte Slilitiii. 

Including the Military Corps from other cities, and the 
whole under the command of 

MAJOR GE.\ERAL CHARLES W. SANDFORD, 

As a military escort, in reverse order. 

STAFF 

I Division Inspector Colonel Wetmore. 

Division Judge Advocate Colonel Ward. 

199 



m 




Ob^^cjilics of 



nflmiiiiii. 



Division Engineer Colonel Morell. 

Division Quartermaster Lieut. Colonel Sandfoed. 

Division Paymaster Major Bibby. 

Aid-de-Camps Majors Tomes and Schenck. 

Volunteer do Majors Richards and Kane. 

Division Hospital Surgeon. .Dr. L. A. Sayre. 
Division Assistant do. . .Dr. Woodward. 




THE HUDSON BRIGADE OF HOBOKEN, 
Under the command of General E. Y. R. Wright. 



Aid-de-Cauip Major Harrison, 

Wash'n Volunteers. .Capt. Spear, 

Wright Rifles " Riley, 

Jer. City Continentals " Pollard, 



Highwood Guard Capt. Brower, 

National Guard " Tuthill, 

Hobokcn Rifles " Neiman, 

Washington Blues " Harris. 



FOURTH BRIGADE, 

Commanded by Brigadier General John Ewen. 



Brigade Major Robert Taylor, 

Judge Advocate N. B. La Bau. 

Aid-de-Camp E. Lk Gal, 



Quartermaster H. Eagle, 

Paymaster G. A. Smith, 

Engineer E. J. Hawley, 



Volunteer Aid-de-Camp John H. Abraham. 



SIXTY-NINTH REGIMENT. 



Colonel Charles S. Roe, 

Lieut. Colonel. .Michael Doheny, 

Major James C. McBirney, 

Quartermaster.. J. C. O'Byene, 
Assis't Surgeon.. W. M. Giles, 

Company A Captain Leonard, 

" B " Newman, 



Company C Captain McCourt, 

TOBIN, 

Ryan, 
Gorman, 
Green, 
Judge, 

COAKLEY, 



D. 
E. 
F. 
G. 
H. 
I.. 



Company K Captain Hinchman. 

200 




sffl^Bsa? 



ltei)ri| t)li|i|, 





S^i)c\ 






TWELFTH 


REGIMENT. 




Colonel 


..Henry G. Stebbins, 


Light Ciuard* .... 


Capt. Vincent, 


Lieut. Colonel. 


.E. B. Hart, 


Garde Lafayette. . 


" Leclerc, 


Adjutant 


..J. B. Stearns, 


Independ. Guards. 


" Cairns, 


Paymaster 


. .F. W. COOI.IDGE, 


Lafay'e Fusileers.. 


" French, 


Quartermaster . 


..T. C. Fields, 


Baxter Blues 


" Waterbuey, 


Surgeon 


. .A. BURDETT, 


City Blues 


" Johnson, 


Engineer 


. .J. Livingston, 


City Musketeers.. 


" Palmer, 


Chaplain 


. .J. T. Daly, 


Tompkins Blues... 


" Besson, 


Sergeant Major 


. .C. Carnes, 


Baxter Guard 


" Dyckman, 


New York Riflemen 


Captain Johnson. 1 


*This Compiiny p.iraded as Guard of Honor to the funeral car. 






S^ 


i]c\ 






ELEVENTH 


REGIMENT. 




Lieut. Colonel. 


.Jas. H. Waterhouse, 


Continentals 


Capt. Helm, 


Major 


.D. C. Hyde, 


Irish Am. Guards. 


•' Br.'ldy, 


Adjutant 


.S. R. Pixckney, 


Montgomery " . 


" Murphy, 


Paymaster 


.Keyser, 


City Rifles 


" Tangier, 


Surgeon 


.Dr. Van Cort. 


Wash'ton Guards. 


" RiNGHAUSEN, 


Engineer 


.H. Robinson, 


State Rifles 


" Van Vulty, 


Chaplain 


. Stewart, 


National Riflemen. 


" Ellis, 


City Guards 


. Captain McArdle, 


Brigade Lancers.. . 


" Clancey. 




Sq 


]0. 






TENTH R 


EGIMENT. 




Colonel 


W. Halsey, 


Company B 


..Capt. Jaciirling, 


Lieut. Colonel. 


Thomas Jones, 


C 


. . " Fanth, 


Major 


G. J. Smith, 


D 


..Lieut. WiLLETS, 


Adjutant 


Henry A. Smith, 


E 


. .Capt. McGrath, 


Paymaster 


E. M. Dodge, 


F 


. . " Dodge, 


Quartermaster . 


Thos. E. Smith, 


G 


... " Warren, 


Company A 


Capt. W. HusEN, 


H 


. . " Becuer, 


Artillery — National Grays. . . 


Capt 


Raynor. 



201 





' 0'ise(]i|ic3 of ''' 




THIRD BRIGADE, 

Commanded by Col. B. C. Ferris 



Act'g Brigade Maj.GEO. W. SAirxir, 

Surgeon H.J. Quackenboss, 

Judge Advocate. . . J. J. Leroc-qve, 
Engineer E. W Leavitt, 



j Aid-de-Camp 

NINTH REGIMENT. 



Brigade Paymaster — J. R. Smith, 
Brigade Quartermaster. G. Hakkioi", 
Assis't Quartermaster. .Smith, 

J. J. NORTHOP. 



Lieut. Colonel. . .Charles Sweeney, Company A 

Major Charles E. Shea, " C 

Adjutant J. McDonough, " D.... 

Paymaster John Colg.\n, " E 

Quartermaster. . .T. O'Brien, " F.... 

Surgeon W. O'Donnell, M.D. " G. ... 

Chaplain Peter Hogg, " H 

Dragoons Capt. Kerrigan, " I 

EIGHTH REGIMENT. 

Colonel Thom.\s F. De Yoe, | Chaplain P. Trainor, 

Company A Capt. Lyons, 



.Capt. Coffey, 

. " Mackey, 

. " Phelan, 

. " Cavan.\gii, 

. " Daly, 

. " DOLAN, 

. " Murray, 

. " Kelly. 



Lieut. Colonel Moses E. Crasto 

Adjutant R. P. Clark, 

Paymaster D. V. Freeman, 

Quartermaster J. M.\tthieson, 

Surgeon's Mate.... J. Aitken, Jr., 
Engineer A. Winham, 

CAVALRY. 

Company I Capt. Patterson, ] Company J 

SEVENTH REGIMENT. 



B.. 
C. 
D.. 
E.. 
F.. 




Colonel ABR.A.HAM Dueyee, 

Lieut, Colonel Lefferts, 

Acting Adjutant.. .Pond, 

Paymaster Carpenter, 

Quartermaster.. ..Allen, 

Surgeon Higgins, 

Engineer I»aunitz, 

Chaplain Brainard, 

Troop of Cavalry., 



Company 1. 
2. 
3. 
4. 
5. 
G. 
7. 
8. 



' Mandeville, 

' Forshay, 

' Little, 

' Chamberlin, 

' QUIN, 

— Capt, Varian, 



.Capt, Pressingiir, 

. " Shaler, 

. " Price, 

. " RiBLET, 

" Creighton, 

. " Nevers, 

" Monroe, 

" Shumway, 



.Capt. Watts. 



202 



irnriTiTiiiii, 




ttciUii Clqy. 



SECOND BRIGADE, 
Commanded by Col. Andrew Warner 



Major and Inspector. .Rodert H. Boyd, 

Judge Advocate Wji, H. Paine, 

Hospital Surgeon Alex. B. Morr, 

Engineer B. E, Manierre, 



SIXTH REGIMENT. 




Quartermaster. .Stephen Pacl, 

Paymaster Willi a:m Matthews, 

Aid-de-Camp .. . Jaaies Ij. Dayton, 
Volunteer " Geo. II, Pen.mman, 



Colonel Thomas F. Peees, 

Lieut. Colonel J. G, Wellstood, 

Adjutant William Chalmers, 

Surgeon James Alcock, 

Surgeon's Mate. . .Wm. W, Jackson, 

Quartermaster Charles Harrison, 

Paymaster Mark Levy, 

Engineer J. M. Trimble, 



Company A Capt. Cordell, 



B. 
C. 
D. 
E. 
F. 
G. 
H. 



Ellis, 

Seitert, 

Allaire, 

Pinckney, 

Finch, 

Lalor, 

Gregory. 



FIFTH REGIMENT. 



Lieut. Colonel. .U. Schwalzwaelder, 

Major Otto Kloppenburgh, 

Adjutant Fred. Esenwein, 

Surgeon Francis Miller, 

Surgeon's Mate . Francis H. Loss, 
Quartermaster.. H. Funke, 

Paymaster Henry' A. Casseneer, 

Engineer Henry Ranch, 



Company A Capt. Westfall, 

" B " Heitman, 

C " FiNCKE, 

" D " Baacd, 

" E Lieut. DoHRMAN, 

" F Capt. Rottgier, 

" G " Bet.temann, 

H " EWALD. 



FOURTH REGIMENT. 

Colonel Charles Yates, 

Lieut. Colonel Ed. C. Charles, 

]\Iajor Dan. W. Teller, 

Adjutant Nathaniel Coles, 

Quartermaster James F. Cox, 

Paymaster, W. H. Gunther, 

Surgeon's Mate Bezaleel Howe, 

Engineer Tiieo. Timpson, 

Chaplain J. Ren wick, Jr. 



CAVALRY. 

Company A, Hussars, Capt. Loins, 

B, " " LUERSSON, 

" C, Dragoons " Arent. 
artillery. 

Company B Capt. Ferber, 

" C " Fink, 

D " Forbes, 

E " Fay, 

F " HiRCKEN. 

203 




C'bs^(]i|ie3 of 



FIRST BRIGADE, 



Commanded by Brigadier General Chas. B. Spicer 



Brigade Major Charles H. Smith, 

Judge Advocate. ..Lucius Pitkin, 
Hospital Surgeon. .Ho.mer Bostwick, 
Voluntary Aid-de-Camp. . . 



THE SEPARATE BATTALION. 




Engineer John Brougham, 

Paymaster Charles F. Wood, 

Aid-de-Camp Dan'l H. SnCEE, 

C. J. Guillemot. 



Major F. L. Hagadorn, 

Adjutant, Acting.. M. Tompkins, Jr., 

Quartermaster John Lawrence, 

Paymaster W. Hagadorn, Jr., 

Surgeon C. Brueninghausen, 

Surgeon's Mate. . .John E. Gallaer. 



Company A Capt. Blake, 



B. 
C. 
D. 
E. 



Meyer, 
O'Brien, 
KLm'pes, 
Blake. 



SEYENTY-FIRST REGIMENT. 



... A. S. VOSBUKGH, 

...W. P. Moody, 
...S. S. Parker, 
...P. J. Paresen, 

Paymaster Henry W. Fisher, 

Chaplain Geo. W. Warner, 

Engineer and Adj't..T. B. Johnston. 



Colonel 

Lieut. Colonel 

Major 

Quartermaster 



Company A Capt. Hagadorn, 



B. 
C. 
D. 
E. 
F, 



Wheeler, 
Little, 
Smith, 

Woodworth, 
Glover. 



THIRD REGIMENT. 




Lieut. Colonel Wm. Menck, 

Major :....C. Martin, 

Adjutant E. Lyon, 

Paymaster John Finck, 

Quartermaster Philip Zeiger, 

Surgeon J. P. Mumford, 

Engineer F. Dickel, 

Chaplain S. Stanfield, 

Company A Capt. Ducker, 



Company B Capt. Briser, 



C. 
D. 
E. 
F., 
G, 
H. 
I.. 
K. 



Wqbbenhgrst, 

Froelick, 

Rottman, 

Meyer, 

Bechtel, 

Keller, 

Wicthen, 

Herf. 




Colonel John A. Bogaut, 

Lieut. Colonel Joseph Craig, 

Major J. W, Braisted, 

Adjutant John Kay, 

raymaster S. A. Darling, 

Quartermaster James Beck, 

Chaplain Tames Frazer, 

Surgeon Wm. Beck, 

Assis't Surgeon James F. Frazer, 

Engineer : Josi ah P. Knapp. 



1st Comp. Gov, Blues 



Eagt.eson, 
Darrow, 
Johnson, 
McKenzie 

MaNSOxN, 

LuTz, 

Robert, 

Cassalier 



FIRST REGIMENT, 



Colonel John B, Ryer. 

Major Wm. Forsythe, 

Adjutant Isaac C. Hunt, 

Paymaster A. Hagenlorker, 

Quartermaster S. B. Ryer, 

Surgeon H. Traphagen. 



Company A Capt. Koex, 

" B " Rasche. 

" C " Storms, 

" D " Kennedy', 

" E " LUBEC 



innil Diiiisinn. 



Gen. Wm. L. Morris, Aid to Grand Marshal. 

Col. John B. Montgomery, 
William Morris, Jr., Esq. 



' > JJids. 






iFunctcil ®ar,* 

DRAWN BY EIGHT GRAY IIOKSES, ArrROPRIATET.Y CAPARISONED. 

LIGHT GUARD, CAPTAIN VINCENT, 

AS A GUARD OF HONOR. 

* The funeral car was of magnificent design, and neatly executed, by Edward 
H. Senior, Esq. It was constructed in the form of a temple, upon a scale of 
massive grandeur, and presented a mournfully gorgeous appearance. It was 
nearly square, and stood about fifteen feet high. Upon a raised centre, on the 
platform, was a large gilt urn, of classic mould, bearing the simple inscription — 
" Henry Clay," and overhung with crape, supported from the beak of asplendi<lly 
carved gilt eagle, representing America protecting the ashes of her beloved son. 
At each corner of the car, a tapering Corinthian column, wrapped in crape, sup- 
ported the canopy. Upon the top of the canopy, a dais of sky blue velvet, en- 
twined with black satin, and trimmed with gold lace and stars, supporting an 
American eagle in a drooping position, emblematical of the Nation's grief. The 
whole car was surrounded with evergreens, and a chaplet of the same was thrown 
around the urn. Tlie national banner, heavily shrouded with funereal draperies, 
and half furled around the flag stafF, occupied each corner, their folds forming a 
fitting shroud for the tirn within. The skirting of the whole drapery was con- 
trastingly ornamenteil with heavy gold bullion. To the rear part of the car was 
attached a banner of wliite silk, upon which the following inscription, beautifully 
embroidered in black .silk, appeared: 

"Hearts whieli glow for freedom's sway, 
Come and mourn for He."?ry Clay." 
206 



Heoi-ii eiiiij. 



m. 



lll'ini 



The following gentlemen were selected as Pall-Bearers 

Gilbert Cleland, 
G. H. Striker, 
George Law, 

C. W. Lawrence, 

D. Austin Mum, 
Frederick Pentz, 
Michael Ulsiiceffer, 
James Harper, 
Robert H. Morris, 
Peter Cooper, 
Thomas 'Conor, 
Stephen Allen, 
Alex. Stewart, 
Jeremiah Dodge, 
C. S. Woodhull, 
Isaac M. Phyfe. 
J, Phillips Phcenix, 



A. R. Lawrence, 
James Kelly, 
Isaac Newton, 
John Robbins, 
Robert Hyslop, 
Jacob Bell, 
J. A. Westervelt, 
Anthony Compton, 
Willis Hall, 
Gideon Ostrander, 
William Smith, 
Henry Shaw, 
John Dimon, 
Andrew Mills, 
William B. Astor, 
W. F. Havemeyer, 
Thomas Owen, 



W. N. Blakeman. 

Mayors of New York, Brooklyn, Williamsbiirgli, Jersey 

City and Newark. 
The Common Councils of the cities of New York, Phila- 
delphia, Brooklyn, Williamsburgh, Jersey City, 
Newark, Paterson and adjoining cities, 
in the following order : 

The Board of Aldermen, 
Preceded by their Sergeant-at-Arms, and headed by their 

President. 

The Board of Assistant Aldermen, 
Preceded by their Sergeant-at-Arms, and headed by their 

President. 

207 





TiUnilliinu 




g'~J~t^.~J 



' C^'igccjiiies of 




^± 




Officers of both Boards. 

Committee of the Common Council of tlic City of 

Philadelphia. 

Common Council of the City of Brooklyn. 

Officers of the Common Council of the City of Brooklyn. 

Mayor and Common Council of the City of Williamshurgh, 

■with their officers. 
The Common Council of Jersey City, with their Clerks, 

Marshal, and others. 

The Common Council of the City of Newark, with their 

Clerk and other officers. 

Committee on the part of the village of Jamaica. 

Ex-Presidents of the United States. 

His Excellency Governor Hunt and Suite. 

Heads of Departments of the State. 

Senate and Assembly of the State of New York. 

Members of the Senate and House of Representatives of 

the United States. 
The Commanding Officer of the First United States Mili- 
tary District, and his Aids. 
Officers of the Army of the United States. 
Commodore W. D. Salter, Commander of the Navy Yard 
and Station of New York, with the Officers of the 
Navy of the United States, and Civic 
Officers of the Navy Yard. 
New York State Society of the Cincinnati. 

'l\\i\ DiniBinu. 

Col. John W. Styles, Aid to Grand Marshal. 
Medad Platt, Esq., Aid. 

Ex-Members of Congress and of the State Legislatures. 



1JCtM':l 




I. 



iil.il. 



Ex-Mayors, cx-Aldermeii and Assistants of the cities of 

New York, Brooklyn and otlicr cities. 

Heads of Departments and Onicers of the City Government. 

Foreign Ministers and Consuls. 

Judges of the United States, State and City Courts. 

District Attorney. Members of tlie Bar, 

Members of the Press. 
Sherift", Under-Slieriff and Deputies of the City of 

New York. 

Register, County Clerk and Coroner of the City of New 

York, with their officers. 

Police Magistrates, with staves. 

Marshal of the United States for the Southern District of 

New York, with his Deputies and other Officers. 

United States District Attorney, Collector of the Port of 

New York, with the Clerks and other Officers of 

his Department, Surveyor, Naval Officer, 

and other officers connected 

with their Department. 

Postmaster of the City of New York, with his Secretary, 

Assistant and Clerks. 

The Board of Education of the City of New York, 

Preceded by its President and Clerk. 

President, Trustees, Faculty and Students of 

Columbia College. 

President, Council, Faculty and Students of University of 

New York. 

College of Physicians and Surgeons. 

Young Men's Debating Society. 

New York Academy of Medicine. 

New York Medical Society and Physicians and Students. 

Teachers and Pupils of Grammar School of 

14 209 



fl^^i::^ 




'IIMIIIi, 




(9bscc)i|ies of 




Columloia College and University. 
Professors of the Free Academy, with Pupils of the same. 

College of Pharmacy. 

New York Historical Society. 

United States Naval Lyceum. 

National Academy of Design. 

Engineers' Institute. 

Chamber of Commerce. 

General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen. 

American Institute. 

Mechanics' Institute, Officers and Members. 

The several Printers' Societies of the City of New York. 

Board of Trade. 

Masters, Wardens and Harbor Masters of the 

Port of New York. 

Pilots of the Port of New York. 

Members of the Industrial Congress. 

Teachers' Association. 

Teachers and Pupils of the several Public, Ward and 

Private Schools. 

President, Superintendent, Officers and Pupils of the 

Deaf and Dumb, and Blind Institutions. 

Veterans of 1812, in carriages. 



Iniirtji Diniiiioii. 

Col. A. A. Bre.m:>'ER, Aid to Grand Marshal. 
S. S. Ward, Esq., Aid. 

Civic Societies of the cities of Brooklyn, Jersey City, 

Newark, Williamsburgh, Paterson and Newburgh. 

Civic Societies of adjoining Cities. 

210 




it ep I'll Gliiy. 



LlUijliL. 



jfiftlj piuisimi. 

Adam P. Pentz, Esq., Aid to Grand Marshal. 
Henry B. Cook, Esq., Aid. 

Firemen of Brooklyn, Jersey City, Williamsburgh, and 

other cities and villages. 

Exempt Firemen. 

Fire Department of tlie City of New York. 

liitji Diuisinti. 

Capt. Wm. H. Underhill, Aid to Grand Marshal. 
John T. Ogden, Esq., Aid. 

Grand Lodge, State of New York, Free and Accepted 

Masons.* 

Irnnitjj iOiuisiim. 

Elijah F. Purdy, Esq., Aid to Grand Marshal. 
Robert Smith, Esq., Aid to Grand Marshal. 

Young Men's Democratic Young Men's Whig General 
General Committee. Committee. 

* This Division presented an imposing appearance, the diiferent orders marching 
with apiiropriate banners, each member wearing the insignia of his order, with a 
rich mourning badge on the left arm. The whole fraternity was escorted by a 
large body of Knights Templars, mounted, and dressed in the sjilendid military 
costume, incident to their order, and the days of chivalry and the crusades. An 
interesting and most valuable relic was carried by the St. .lohns' Lodge, No. 1. 
This was the Bible which was used by Chancellor Robert R. Livinq.stom, in ad- 
ministering the first oath of office to Gen. George Washington, as President of 
the LTnited States, in 17S9. It is only used on the most solemn occasions, and 
was brought out to-day in honor to the illustrious Henry Clay, who was an hon- 
orary member of the lodge. A detachment of Washington Continentals acted as 
in their uniform, the same a:s that worn by the Father of his Country. 



^ 



:J 



^g guard of ht 



211 



^liga 



(9bsc(^nics of 



iii:i'.niiu.. 





Democratic Whig General Democratic Republican Gen. 

Committee. Committee. 

Whig General Committee of the City of Williamsbiirgh. 

Society of Tammany, or Columbian Order. 

Clay Clubs of Newburgh. 

Clay Festival Association. 

Young Guard Henry Clay Association. 

Central Clay Committee of 1844. 

Various Clay Clubs of the City and County of New York. 

Eighth Ward Scott Legion. 

([^igljtlj Dinisinn. 

Wm. T. Child, Esq., Aid to Grand Marshal. 
James Ackerman, Esq., Aid. 

Order of United Americans. 

Uiiitji lOinisinn. 

Col. Robert B. Boyd, Aid to Grand Marshal. 
J. J. Kelly, Esq., Aid. 

B i) 1] 5 . 

Butchers' Association of the cities of New Y^ork, Brooklyn, 

Jersey City, Williamsburgh, and other 

cities and villages, mounted. 

Cartmen's Association of the city of New Y^ork, mounted. 

(I^rntji Hinisinii:. 

Col. J. C. BuRNHAM, Aid to Grand Marshal. 
Dr. H. F. QuACKENBOSS, Aid. 



^ 




ife)]i'y GIqij 




Snivel. 

Gold and Silver Artisans. 

Protestant Association. 

Omnibus Proprietors' Mutual Association. 

d-lriinitli lOiuiiiinii. 

Samuel Osgood, Esq., Aid to Grand Marshal. 
Erastus Grover, Esq., Aid. 

Grand Division Sons of Temperance. 

Cadets of Temperance. 

Independent Order of Recliabites. 

Roman Catholic Temperance Society. 

Shamrock Benevolent Society. 

Cmrlftli Diuisinn. 

William Dinsmore, Esq., Aid to Grand Marshal. 
John A. Bunting, Esq., Aid. 

Tailors' Societies. 

Employees of the Express Establishments, with 

Express Wagons, decorated. 

€jjirtnntlj Diaisinir. 

RuFUS E. Crane, Esq., Aid to Grand Marshal. 
George H. E. Lynch, Esq., Aid. 

Whitehall Association. 

Eureka Association, and the various Benevolent Societies 

of the city of New York. 

213 





jriftrriitli Diuisinn. 

Samuel Rogers, Esq., Aid to Grand Marshal. 
Claekson Crolius, Esq., Aid. 

Mechanics' Societies. 



rJRfs 



ORDER OF ARRANGEMENTS. 

The Societies, Associations and Trades, are requested to 
appear in the order prescribed, and to walk six abreast. 

Bands will play Funeral Dirges in common time. 

Such societies and associations as have not yet reported, 
will be assigned places in the order in which they shall 
report themselves to the Grand Marshal. 

No banner bearing political devices or inscriptions will 
be admitted in the procession. 

The First Division of Xew York State Militia, and the 
civic societies, will assemble at two o'clock, precisely, at the 
following places, preparatory to being brought into column: 

The Division of Militia in Broadway, left resting on 
Chambers street. 

Officiating Clergymen, Orator of the Day, the Clergy 
and Pall-Bearers, in the Governor's room. 

Mayors of the several cities, and ex-Presidents, Foreign 
Ministers and Consuls, in the Mayor's office. 

214 



rmrmiii.hi. 



Common Councils of New York, Brooklyn, Jersey City, 
Newark, Williamsburgh, and the Trustees of the villages 
ofHobokcn and Jamaica, together with their officers, in 
room No. 8, City Hall. 

Governors, Lieutenant-Governors, Heads of i)e})art- 
ments. Members of the Senate and Assembly, Senators and 
Members of Congress, in the Governor's room. 

Society of Cincinnati, Revolutionary Soldiers, ex-Mayors, 
ex-Mcmbers of the Common Council, and Heads of Depart- 
ments of the City Government, in the Library room. 

Officers of the Army and Navy, in the Keeper's room. 

Veterans of 1812, in carriages in Murray street. 

Judges of the Courts, District Attorney, Members of the 
Bar, ex-Members of Congress, in the Law Library room, 
new City Hall. 

Sheriff and his Deputies, in Sheriff's office. 

County Clerk, Register and Coroner, with their officers 
and the Police Magistrates in the County Clerk's office. 

United States District Attorney, United States Marshal 
and his Deputies, Collector and Surveyor of the Port, 
Naval Officer, Postmaster, and the Officers connected with 
their several Departments, in the United States Court. 

Civic Societies of Brooklyn, Newark, Williamsburgh, 
Paterson and other places, in Park place. 

President, Trustees, Council, Faculties and Students of 
Columbia College, and of the University, in the Supreme 
Court room, new City Hall. 

Medical Societies and Students, College of Pharmacy, 
Historical Society, United States Naval Lyceum, National 
Academy of Design, Board of Trade, Masters, Wardens, 
Harbor Masters and Pilots of the Port, American Institute, 
Mechanics' Listitute, in the Superior Court, new City Hall. 

215 



p' (Obsequies of '1 




Officers and Pupils of Blind, and Deaf and Dumlj Insti- 
tutions, in office of Commissioner of Repairs and Supplies, 
new City Hall. 

Other Associations, and gentlemen of the Third Division, 
rear of City Hall. 

Fourth Division, Park place, front resting on Broadway. 

Fifth Division, in Grand street, east of Broadway, front 
resting on Broadway. 

Sixth Division, in Grand street, west of Broadway, front 
resting on Broadway. 

i Seventh Division, in Howard street, west of Broadway, 
front resting on Broadway. 

Eighth Division, in Canal street, cast of Broadway, front 
resting on Broadway. 

Ninth Division, in Canal street, west of Broadway, front 
resting on Broadway. 

Tenth Division, in Lispenard street, front resting on 
Broadway. 

Eleventh Division, in Walker street, west of Broadway, 
front resting on Broadway. 

Twelfth Division, in White street, west of Broadway, 
front resting on Broadway. 

1 hirteenth Division, in Franklin street, west of Broad- 
way, front resting on Broadway. 

Fourteenth Division, in Leonard street, east of Broad- 
way, front resting on Broadway. 

Fifteenth Division, in Leonard street, west of Broadway, 
front resting on Broadway. 

The closing ceremonies, consisting of the Prayer, Ora- 
tion and Benediction, Avill take place on the esplanade, in 
front of the City Hall. 

The troops of the United States, stationed at the differ- 

216 




'jiPv 



lIcDl'lfCinii, 



ent posts in this harbor, arc requested to fire minute-guns, 
from noon till sunset. 

The Veteran Corps will fire minute-guns, from the Bat- 
tery, during the procession. 

The carriages for the use of the Pall-Bcarcrs, and Socie- 
ty of the Cincinnati and Revolutionary soldiers, will lie 
under tlie direction of Asher Taylor, First Marshal of 
the city. 

The owners and proprietors of all pu])lic and licensed 
carriages and vehicles, are directed to withdraw the same 
from the streets through which the procession is to pass, 
after the hour of one o'clock, p. m. 

The Chief of Police is charged with the enforcement of 
the above order. 

The owners of private carriages and vehicles are also re- 
spectfully requested to conform with the wishes of the 
Committee in this respect. 

No obstruction of any kind will be permitted in the 
streets through which the procession is to pass. 

WILLIAM 11. CORNELL, 
WESLEY SMITH, 
WILLIAM J. BRISLEY, 
WILLIAM M. TWEED, 
JAMES M. BARD, 
S. L. II. WARD, 
JOHN BOYCE, 
RICHARD T. COMPTON, 

Pros't 
ISAAC O. BARKER, 
THOMAS WOODWARD, 
JOHN J. TAIT, 
WILLIAM ANDERSON, 
WILLIAM II. WRIGHT, 
S. BENSON McGOWN', 
J. II. VALENTINE, 
JONATHAN TROTTLR, 

Pies-t. J 
217 



Committee 
of the 
Board of Aldermen. 



Committee of the 

Board of 

Assistant Aldermen. 







(ttrnnonics in tlu |hui!. 

About 7 o'clock the head of the procession entered the 
Park. Upon the arrival of the funeral car in front of the 
City Hall, it received the honors of a marching salute from 
the military, as they filed around the esplanade, and occu- 
pied the entire space in front of the Hall. Each division 
as it passed through the Park, in review, was dismissed, 
they returning to their respective quarters. 

The Common Council, with his Honor the Mayor, the 
Orator of the day, the officiating Clergy, the Grand Mar- 
shal and his Aids, Invited Guests, Pall-Bearers, Officers 
of the Army and Navy, Officers of the First Division New 

213 



It e I) Ir i| e I i] (| 



LUIMjiu. 



York State Militia, Heads of L)ej)artmcnts, Veterans of 
1812, and otlicrs, occnpied tlie platform. The Aids to the 
Grand Marshal and the Guard of Honor, were drawn up in 
line in front, when the Grand Marshal, General William 
Hall, introduced the 

REV. JOHN M. KREBS, D.D., 

who offered up the following impressive 

p ni ij f r . 

God, our dwelling-place in all generations. By Thee 
kings reign and princes decree justice. Thou art our Lord. 
Thou art our refuge. In grace and tenderness hast Thou 
ruled us, and hast made the lines to fall to us in pleasant 
places. Thanks to Thy name, for our goodly heritage. 
Thanks for Thy mercies to our fathers — for their wisdom, 
integrity and valor, which achieved for us our blessings; 
and for all those whom Thou hast raised up to guide our 
counsels, to frame and to administer our laws, and to de- 
fend us in danger. While we, this day, deplore the decease 
of the eminent statesman whose prudent counsel, eloquent 
speech, and manifold services of patriotism were Thy gift 
to our country, we are both admonished not to put our 
trust in man, whose breath is in his nostrils, and are en- 
couraged to look unto the hills from whence all our help 
cometh. When Thou with rebukes dost correct man for 
iniquity. Thou makest his beauty to consume like the moth. 
Surely every man is vanity. The princes perish; but Thou, 
God, art our strong, as Thou art our only, confidence. 
Hear Thou, then, our prayer. To Thee, and to the word 
of Thy grace, we commend her, the widowed partner, and 
the family, whose honored head Thou hast taken away. 

21!) 






0bscc]i|ies of 



nnniiiiuu 



Comfort them with Thy mercy, which is in Jesus Christ 
Thy Son, our Redeemer. We give thanks to Thee, that 
amid tlie temptations of a public life so laborious and so 
protracted, Thou wert pleased to imbue the mind of our 
departed fellow-citizen with Thy saving truth, and to lead 
his faith to the Lamb of God, the sacrifice for our sins; 
and for the open avowal of that faith in Thine earthly 

courts. 

We thank Thee for the supporting power of the Gospel 
hope which he enjoyed in his dying hour, and for the clear 
testimony which, living and dying, he bore to the attraction 
and the exclusive fitness and priceless value of the salvation 
of the Cross. May this blessedness be the portion of all 
who mourn his death. May his example and his testimony 
not be lost upon our rulers and our statesmen, nor upon 
any class of our countrymen. But may they be mindful, 
amid all the aims and pursuits of life, that they all need 
for themselves that personal interest in Christ, that puri- 
fying trust in Him, which alone shall associate them with 
those who have inherited salvation, and shall convey to 
them that wisdom and righteousness which fit men to bear 
rule and to" enjoy freedom. May they all be mindful of 
their accountability to Heaven. Thus bless thy servant, 
the President of the United States— the National Congress, 
from whom Thou hast called away one of their most illus- 
trious members— our governors, legislators, and judges— 
our counselors and advocates — the Mayor and the Com- 
mon Council of this city, who have ordered these solemn 
obsequies. Death has come to teach them that there is 
One higher than the highest. May they disdain bribes 
and hate covetousness; may they consult and determine 
only for the public good; for their country; for God; for 




Illlllll' 



I) etflrti oKiM 



'il'inn.iiM 






truth; may tlicy be just, ruling in the fear of God. Give 
grace to our people that they may ever select such for 
office and authority; and so may we all lead a quiet and 
peaceful life in all godliness and honesty. And, to this 
end, we humbly beseech Thee, both forgive and allay the 
bitterness and injuries of party strife. Our shame, and our 
sin, we confess this day, over the grave, where obloquy 
and calumny are hushed; where political animosity is re- 
buked, and enmity is buried; where our citizens mingle 
their praises and regrets for the statesman and the patriot, 
whom we all have lost. 

Extend Thy gracious sway and Thy protecting arm over 
this land. Be Thou its glory and its trust. And let the 
saving rule of Thine Anointed dispense peculiar blessings 
and salvation through all our borders, and throughout the 
world. And, now, most merciful Lord and Savior, grant 
unto us the free and the full pardon of our personal and of 
our national sins. Teach us to consider our latter end, 
and the measure of our days what it is. Renew our hearts 
by Thy Holy Spirit. And give unto us all grace, that we 
may live by the faith of the Son of God; and die the death 
of Thy saints, and dwell forever with the Lord. We ask 
it all, for the merits' sake of Jesus Christ, our Mediator 
and Advocate. Amen. 

At the conclusion of the prayer, 

DO I) WORTH'S CORNET BAND 

Performed the celebrated 

From Mendelssohn's Oratorio of St. Paul. After which, 
the Grand Marshal introduced to the vast assemblage, the 
Orator of the day, 




N. BOWDITCH BLUNT, 
Who delivered, in a most impressive manner, the following 

©niti0n. 

Henry Clay is dead! 

Such was the startling intelligence which, but a few days 
since, flashing on the wings of the lightning, was diffused 
throughout the entire republic. Commencing with a ru- 
mor, at whose faintest whisper Senators and Representa- 
tives abandoned the halls of legislation, it burst upon the 
country a dread reality. The statesman heard it with a 
thrill of awe; the politician with a subdued spirit; the 
hum of business was hushed in the crowded mart; the 
artisan and laborer ceased from their toil; the courts of 
justice were closed; the husbandman watered the furrows 
with his tears, and the sailor, looking to the half mast 
flag, whispered with white lips, our defender is dead. 
The tolling bell and booming minute-gun, proclaimed the 
departure of a mighty spirit. The sombre decorations of 
funereal show betokened the darkness and gloom of the 
land. All felt that sorrow and grief which follows the 
death of the cherished and the loved. The nation mourned 
the nation's loss. 

There is a fitness in such manifestations. They give 
hope and encouragement to the future, for they teach us 
that however transient may be our mortal lingering, men's 
deeds live after them. The immortal spirit shall not die, 
and the genius, the eloquence, and the patriotism which 
inspired, aroused and encouraged his compatriots, still 
remain in the fruits of his efiorts, constituting the eternal 
monument upon which is inscribed the deathless name of 
Henry Clay. 

222 



M>1^ 



ri:i'.iiMi,K 



So long as liberty shall endure; so long as the history of 
American freedom shall exist; in every clime, and wherever 
the English language shall be spoken or read, the name of 
the great American Commoner will be joined with the 
orators, statesmen and patriots of past, present and future 



ages. 



"Ne'ci" to the chambers, where the miglity rest, 
Since their foundation, came a nobler guest ; 
Isor e"er was to the bowers of bliss conveyed, 
A fairer spirit, or more welcome shade." 

The cardinal feature of our form of government is that 
great and noble principle which recognizes equality as the 
basis of civil right. It forms the corner-stone of our po- 
litical fabric. To the humble youth it proclaims, that 
wealth and honor are within the reach of all; that the 
child of the poorest native of the soil may in turn become 
the elective chief of the state; that fortune and fame 
depend not upon hereditary estate, nor ancestorial pride; 
that here, man, under Providence, is the architect of his 
own character and position ; and that, upon himself, and 
the appropriate use of the talents wherewith God has 
endowed him, rest his estimate among his countrymen, 
and his responsibility hereafter. No more striking illus- 
tration of this peculiar character of our institutions can 
be found than he, who, from the humble position of the 
" Mill Boy of the Slashes," self-prompted and self-sustained, 
became foremost among a nation's sons; 

" Primus inter j^ares." 

Well may his country cherish his fame, for he emphati- 
cally lived for his country. The glare of military achieve- 
ments, the red trophies of conquest, the blood-stained 

triumphs of the warrior belonged not to him. Ilis was 

223" 




1 




the proud independence, tlie intellectual power, the elo- 
quent fire, before which the haughtiest quailed; but his 
acts were those of peace; his offerings were on the shrine 
of liberty; his deeds are written in the prosperity, the 
progress and glory of his country. Nor were his efforts 
in behalf of human freedom, limited by his country's 
bounds. 

" Where Greece unslieathcd her olden bh^dc 
For glory in the haunted sliade — 
Where Chimborazo stands sublime 
A landmark by the sea of Time, 
His name shall, as a blessing given 

For man, Oh ! never to depart, 
Peal from the gladdened earth to heaven 
The warm, Aviid music of the heart." 

Henry Clay is no more! He has passed the fatal 
stream, w^hich can never be repassed by mortal. The 
vital spark is extinguished; the music of his voice is 
hushed. Cold and silent he sleeps the sleep that knows 
no earthly waking. 

Reverently we acknowledge this dispensation of Divine 
Providence, and, as W'O bend with solemn awe, we feel 
within us that inspiration which teaches us there is an 
immortality beyond the grave. In this assurance we are 
comforted with the reflection that he died in Christian 
faith and with a Christian hope; and we involuntarily ex- 
claim within ourselves " may our last end be like his." 

Mr. Clay, in his brief review of the character of 
Chancellor Wythe, has furnished the key to his own 
career. Up to the time of his connection with this illus- 
trious man, we know him only as the boy, an epitome of 
■whose previous life was so graphically given by Mr. Robert 
Hughes, at Campbell Court House, Virginia : "He and 

231 



I were Lorn close to the slashes of old Hanover 




ifeol-y tJliiH. 




worked barefooted, and so did I. He went to mill, and so 

He was good to his mamma, and so was I 
acquaintance with this venerable man opened a new field 
to his view. Before him spread the broad extent of legal 
study, which, in those times especially, served to appal the 
faint-hearted explorer, while it infused energy and vigor 
into the ardent and determined mind. Few were the 
opportunities afforded to the young men of that day. The 
republic was yet in its infancy; the shock of the Revolu- 
tion had left behind its ravages, and the country was slowly 
recovering from the effects of the mighty throes which 
had given birth to a free and independent nation. Public 
libraries were comparatively unknown, and the student 
was left to depend mainly upon his own efforts, aided by 
the private libraries and instruction of his teacher. The 
common law of England, previously recognized as the law 
of the colonies, was undergoing a process of modification 
adapted to the changed relations of the countries, and the 
peculiar character of our government. International law 
was more especially the subject of close and searching 
investigation. The French revolution, with its results 
upon the peace of Europe; the clashing of hostile commer- 
cial interests; the claims of belligerent powers upon the 
one side, and the rights of neutrals on the other, were 
topics of discussion among the statesmen of both worlds. 

It was under these circumstances, that the attention of 
Chancellor Wythe was called to the humble boy, who was 
then commencing a career destined to become so glorious. 
He saw the germ of that intellect, which in its develop- 
ment, was afterward to sway the minds of juries, to charm 
and convince listening senates, to arouse public enthu- 



15 



225 




auiiui^ 



siasm, to direct the course of legislation, and to control 
the energies of a mighty people. The Chancellor and the 
boy beciime friends. The youth has lefc the impression of 
his matured greatness upon the records of his country's 
history, and the character of the patron has been well 
portrayed by the touching testimonial of Mr. Clay himself 
in a letter to a friend. 

Shortly after Mr. Clay's admission to the bar, in 1797, 
he removed to Kentucky, and at once assumed a high 
position at the bar of his adopted state. At this period 
of his life, he Avas remarkable for a fearless independence, 
undaunted courage, keen sarcasm, and brilliant rhetoric, 
which, united to a tall and graceful person, an eye that 
never quailed, and a voice whose tones now ringing like 
a trumpet, and again pleading with the softness of a 
woman, intimidated the turbulent, commanded the re- 
spect of his compeers, and captivated the rude spirits of 
his hearers. These attributes continued to his death. 

The soil itself was congenial to his mind. The native 
forests were yet unsubdued. Here and there a clearing, a 
settlement, and a community indicated the inroads of civ- 
ilization upon the fastnesses of the savasie. The Indian 
still claimed his birth-right, and the tales of savage war- 
fare, and the horrors of border life are chronicled in the 
traditions which designate the state as the " dark and 
bloody ground." Amid scenes like these, aloof from the 
luxuries of polished life, surrounded by primeval forests, 
where nature alone reigned supreme, the future statesman 
and legislator was trained and matured. They furnished 
nutriment to his fancy, vigor to his mind, and, above all, 
encouraged and strengthened that self-reliant spirit which 
in after years sustained him amid the turmoil of politics, 

226 



ij-ci]i^il t): 



iirmnni,, 



1^ 



the struggles of faction, the assaults of calumny, the en- 
counters of political debate, and the forensic disputations 
of the bar. 

Three-fourths of a century have passed since that memo- 
rable declaration which declared to the world our emanci- 
pation from colonial thraldom, and demanded our separation 
from our British brethren, " holding them, as we hold the 
rest of mankind, enemies in war; in peace, friends." The 
year succeeding to that which gave birth to the nation, 
hailed the birth of him who was destined to leave the 
impress of his spirit upon the age. In the language of a 
biographer, " born and cradled in the agonies of a revo- 
lution, Henry Clay seems to have been destined by Provi- 
dence to sympathize with its great principles of freedom, 
and to be the leading champion of human rights for the 
age in which he has lived." 

His career as a legislator commenced in the General 
Assembly of Kentucky, in 1803, from which he was speedily 
elevated to the Senate of the United States, in 1806, for 
the unexpired term of Hon. John Adair. In 1809, he 
was again returned to the Senate; and in 1811, foregoing 
the higher dignity, he became a candidate for the House of 
Representatives, and at the Special Session, Nov. 4, 1811, 
was elected Speaker of the House, to which post he was 
subsequently re-elected six times; occupying that position 
in all about thirteen years. In 1814, he resigned, upon 
being appointed one of the Commissioners to negotiate 
peace with England. In 1825, he became Secretary of 
State, under Mr. Adams; and in 1831, was returned to the 
Senate, where, with a brief interval, consequent upon his 
voluntary retirement, in 1842, he continued until his death, 
being a period of nearly fifty years' public service from 

227 






■"''■"""1^1'" ' 



0hj?cqqies of 



iniiiiMi 



Ids first entrance into public life. It was in these various 
capacities of legislator, diplomatist, and Minister of State, 
that Mr. Clay developed those views and principles of 
public policy which have given to him the designation of 
" The Father of the American System." By this I do not 
mean that single, isolated measure known as the TarifC ; 
but that great expansive system of public policy which, 
based upon the laws of nature and the rights of nations, 
has commanded the respect of the world, while it has 
advanced the true prosperity of the country. Part of this 
system was the enforcement of our rights as a neutral 
power, and the protection of our seamen against the arro- 
gant pretensions of the imperious self-styled " Mistress of 
the Seas." 

It is not too much to say, that no person occupied a 
more prominent position in the origin and support of the 
war of 1812, than Mr. Clay. " The war was declared 
because Great Britain arrogated to herself the pretension 
of regulating our foreign trade, under the delusive name 
of retaliatory Orders in Council — because she persisted in 
the practice of impressing American seamen; because she 
had instigated the Indians to commit hostilities against 
us, and because she had refused indemnity for her past 
injuries upon our commerce." The results of the struggle 
are known, and in the termination so honorable to our- 
selves, and so beneficial to American interests, Mr. Clay 
was again, as one of the Commissioners at Ghent, mainly 
instrumental. 

The recognition of South American Independence, and 
the fearless and determined stand assumed by Mr. Monroe, 
counseled and sustained by Mr. Clay, against foreign 
intervention in the affairs of the South American States; 

228 




^ 



QlMliu 



fft'DlMjt'iqlj. 



^•i,^L, 



his instructions, as Secre4;ary of State, to the ministers to 
the proposed Congress at Panama; his correspondence, 
growing out of the difficulties in relation to the Colonial 
trade and the navigation of the St. Lawrence, and the 
commercial treaties negotiated by him, constitute the 
international feature of his American policy. Internal 
improvements, the protection and encouragement of Amer- 
ican industry, and the complete development of Amer- 
ican resources, and their independence of foreign control, 
formed the domestic portion of his scheme, and thouo-h 
others have honestly differed as to the expediency of some 
of his proposed measures, no one will question the motives 
of patriotism which prompted their advocate. 

More than all, and above all, he cherished the integrity 
of the Union. For this he labored; to this end he strove. 
Placing himself upon the Constitution, he stood before 
the country the advocate of concord and fraternal harmo- 
ny — the stern, unyielding opponent of discord and dis- 
union. Amid the clashing of sectional jealousies and 
discordant interests; the denunciations of heated zealots, 
and the threats of vindictive partisans, his eye quailed 
not; his voice was not hushed. His eagle glance surveyed 
the scene; and anon, amid the whirl of conflict and polit- 
ical strife, above the howlings of the storm, rung out his 
clarion tones of comfort for the faint-hearted, and encour- 
agement to the despairing. Born to command the human 
passions, and skilled to rule the infirmities of our nature, 
he now threatened the defiant, now persuaded the self- 
willed. The tempest was stayed. At the sound of his voice, 
ringing out the notes of warning and alarm, millions sprang 
to the rescue — the war of passions ceased, discord fled, 
and the elements of peace and happiness again shone forth. 

229 



P 



iifiiiii[i!im'TTT'i["i'|ii''tT!'iii['nniiiniw.nriltJ[.i ■- 



iMiiiniiii'K. 



I9bse(^i|ies of 



In 1821, when the storm of dissolution threatened the 
country upon the Missouri question, the almost superhuman 
efforts of Mr. Clay alone averted the result. Again, in 
1833, when nullification reared its hideous head, he inter- 
posed, and the spectre was exorcised. And when, at last, 
disunion showed its horrid front, 

" And o'er our fathers' yet green graves, 
The sons of those who side by side 
Struck down the lion banner's pride, 
Were arming for fraternal strife, 
For blow for blow, and life for life—" 

again stood forth that Old Man Eloquent. He had seen 
most of his children fall around him, one upon the battle- 
field, others by the hand of disease and unexpected death. 
He had felt the anguish and sorrow of the sudden rupture 
of the holiest of ties; he had wept over the graves of his 
own loved offspring, but his country remained. There she 
stood a beacon of liberty to the enthralled of other shores. 
The ever-burning altars of freedom were on her hilltops, 
and the smoke of their incense was diffusing itself through- 
out the world. The sails of her commerce whitened 
every sea, and her flag proudly floated, a sure token of 
protection to all beneath its folds. The oppressed of 
Europe looked to her and her example as their refuge and 
hope. Tyrants and traitors alone hated and feared her. 
All this he saw and knew. Again he donned his armor, 
and battling in the foremost rank with the noble spirits 
who yet survive, and who, forgetful of party and party 
ties stood side by side in defence of our ancient bond of 
brotherhood, his last blows were in the cause of his coun- 
try, constitutional liberty and union. 

Glorious termination of a well-spent life ! Children of 

230 





'!ii:i!ii"ii 




__g;_ej^^y Gi^ij. 




America ! revere his memory — imitate his example — emu- 
late his virtue ! 

" Be just and fear not ; 
Lot all tlie ends thou aims't at be thy Country's, 
Thy God's, and Truth's." 

Thus shall you acquire " the high, the exalted, the sub- 
lime emotions of a patriotism which, soaring toward 
heaven, rises above all mean, low or selfisli things, and is 
absorbed by one soul-transporting thought of the good and 
the glory of one's country. That patriotism which, catch- 
ing its inspiration from the immortal God, and leaving, at 
an immeasurable distance below, all lesser groveling per- 
sonal interests and feelings, animates and prompts to deeds 
of self-sacrifice, of A^alor, of devotion, and of death itself. 
That is public viktue; that is the noblest, the sub- 
LiMEST OP public VIRTUES." That was the public virtue 
OF Henry Clay. 

Women of America ! ye around whom our affections 
cluster and upon whom they depend — cherish in your 
heart of hearts the memory of the departed patriot, and 
to the lisping infant chant the story of his greatness and 
his honest fame. Tell your children of his filial rever- 
ence and devotion; of his untiring energy, his lofty aims, 
his noble bearing, and his self-sacrificing spirit; and teach 
them — be ye, too, the guardians and defenders of that 
Union which he struggled to preserve. 

Men of America! be steadfast in your country's cause. 
Falter not ! Here, over the grave of the departed sage, 
by that courage which failed him not, by the memorials of 
his greatness, by the records of his patriotism, by his un- 
faltering devotion to the cause of freedom, by his undying 
fame, and by that divine faith and resignation which 



^ 



uiu».a„<.,i» ,. ,., ,., ,,. 



Iir;i!li|iiiii 



©bgecjuies of 



cheered, consoled and comforted liis glorious death, swear 
ye that ye will transmit unimpaired, to your posterity, the 
inheritance ye possess — " Our glorious Union, now and 
forever, one and indivisible.'' 

REV. BENJAMIN J. HAIGHT, D.D., 

concluded the beautiful obituary ceremonies with the fol- 
lowing 

ficiuirlttioii. 

Unto God, and to His glorious mercy and protection, I 
commit you. May the Lord preserve and keep you, and 
may He make His voice to shine upon you, and be gra- 
cious unto you. May the light of His countenance be 
upon you, and give you peace, now and evermore. Amen. 



The funeral solemnities in honor of the universally be- 
loved and honored American statesman, the illustrious and 
lamented Henry Clay, having been accomplished, your 
Committee have great reason to congratulate themselves 
upon the very general assistance cheerfully rendered by 
the inhabitants of this and the adjacent cities, in the dis- 
charge of the melancholy, though grateful, duties assigned 
them. Sensible of the high responsibilities resting on 
them, they know that they would be wanting in their duty, 
did they fail to acknowledge, with sentiments of gratitude, 
the promptness and alacrity, as well as the deep feelings 
of sympathy manifested by their fellow-citizens in carry in fl- 
out the various duties of the ceremonial, in the discharge 
of which they seemed to feel themselves highly lionored. 
Party spirit was completely forgotten ; political diifer- 

232 



jfeni-ifgiqij. 



cnccs entirely laid aside, and men of every class and 
station vied with each other in rendering appropriate 
honors to the "mighty dead." All parties claimed him — 
for he was of his tchole country. The citizens of the Re- 
public acted and felt as one people — with a common 
interest in cherishing the memory of the great and good. 
His was one of the few instances in which a great man, 
passing through a long and active life, closely identified 
with the exciting political questions of the day, and 
placed in the front rank in the discussion of subjects of 
vital importance to the interests of the country — lived 
through and outlived all sectional prejudice; every party 
vituperation, and ambitious sordid hypocrisy. His honest, 
his intense, his devoted love of country, endeared him to 
the whole nation. " He was American through and 
through; American in his feelings, American in his aims, 
American in his policy and projects. The influence, the 
grandeur, the dominion of America were the dreams of 
his boyhood, and the intense effort of his riper years. 
For this he valued power, and for this he used it." Of 
him every citizen in the country could justly say — 

" His life was gentle; and the elements 
So mix'd in liim, that Nature might stand up, 
And say to all the world, — This was a man J" 



Your CoDimittee would dwell, for a few moments, upon 
the cnscmhk of the pageant. From an early part of the 
day set apart for the purpose, the city was given up to 
preparation for the imposing solemnities about to take 
place. Precisely at the hour designated in the programme, 
the various military companies, public bodies, associations, 
societies and citizens, having arrived in detachments at 




^""""1 "'"""■ 



jl 



0bs(j()i|ies of 



nTTTininiii.L 






their several places of rendezvous, were formed into col- 
umn by the respective Aids to the Grand Marshal, who, 
upon the signal by the tolling bell, placed himself at tlie 
head of the procession, which then commenced its march. 
A common sentiment of veneration pervaded the entire 
line of tlie procession, and the sympathy between it and 
the throngs that embordered its entire route, was made 
manifest in many exhibitions of tenderness. Thousands 
of buildings in all parts of the city bore, upon their neatly 
decorated fronts, undeniable evidences of the love which 
was felt for Henry Clay. Devices of unique and classic 
conception, and recorded sentiments, setting forth the 
exalted character and virtues of the deceased — his event- 
ful life and tranquil death — were suspended from eaves, 
balconies, stagings, and windows. Funereal draperies, 
streaming from house-top to the street; flags, heavily 
shrouded, at half mast, among the shipping in the harbor, 
and upon every flagstaff in the city; the booming minute- 
o'un, consecutively fired from the Battery, and answered 
again from the forts in the harbor, at the Navy Yard, 
from Brooklyn and Bergen Heights, from Governor's, 
Ellis', Bcdlow's and Staten Islands, reverberating mourn- 
fully through the city, and echoing along the bay, until 
their deafening sounds were lost in the distance; the 
tollino- bells, ringing their sad knell in notes that betoken 
the dissolution of man's earthly career — the same mourn- 
ful sounds distinctly heard from the bells in Brooklyn, 
Jersey City, and Williamsburgh, chiming in doleful con- 
cert with those of this city; the solemn dirge; the muffled 
drum- the heavy tramp of the mournful procession, as 
it wended, in its slow and measured length, along the 
streets- all gave the strongest tokens of the deep sym- 

234 



V 



if&i^k-jj Gl^n 



numrrimii. — 





patliy pervading' the hearts of the thousands thiit liad 
come from their business and homes to render their last 
tribute of love and homage to the memory of a Nation's 
departed son. Though during the early part of the day, 
the sun shone forth with its highest splendor, darting 
its torrid rays with unusual vigor, yet toward the after- 
noon, the heavens, like the earth, put on their sable 
mantling; a cooling and shadowy cloud intervened between 
the burning rays of the sun and the earth, and threw a 
singularly gloomy aspect over the whole city — appropriate 
to the mournful solemnities of the day. All business was 
suspended, and at an early hour, every part of the city, 
save on the line of the procession, was deserted. Perfect 
order reigned everywhere; thousands of strangers from 
the adjacent cities thronged our streets as participators in 
the mournful obsequies. The entire route of the proces- 
sion, on every side, was lined with inscriptions, busts, 
monuments, and other imposing reminiscences of respect 
to the great man's memory. Many of the devices and 
inscriptions exhibited a refined taste, with great appro- 
priateness; and very frequently, as some thrilling tribute 
of affection was met, the civic portion of the procession 
uncovered and remained so until they passed it. 

The procession was probably the longest ever seen in 
this city, and one general feeling marked every section 
of its immense numbers, illustrative of the beautiful senti- 
ment of the occasion — its sincerity. It was no unmeaning 
mockery of woe; no mere seeming of regret, but the true 
and real mourning of an appreciating, a grateful and a 
bereaved people. To no man, living or dead, has America 
ever paid a higher tribute of respect than that which she 
endered to the memory of Henry Clay. The suliject 

235 



iimHiiMBIWI.J.I.i ,1. l.,L, 



0bse()i(ies of 



lilUilUi 




is full of material for reflection — an encouragement for 
others to walk with uprightness, and in the paths of virtue 
and integrity, following him as an example, worthy of all 
imitation. 

"Lives of great men all remind us, 

We can make our lives sublime ; 
And departing, leave behind us. 

Footprints in the sands of time. 
Footprints, that perhaps another. 

Sailing o'er life's troubled main, 
Some forlorn and shipwrecked brother, 

Seeing, may take heart again." 

In conclusion, your Committee beg leave to express 
their sincere thanks to the Grand Marshal and his Aids; 
the military, political and civic bodies; the clergy, citizens 
of this and adjacent cities, and all others who united with 
them upon this melancholy occasion, for their valuable 
and essential services in carrying into eflect the detailed 
arrangements of the day; and most especially for the 
cheerful, prompt and efficient manner with which they all 
responded, in every instance, to the wishes of the Com- 
mittee in giving effect to this solemn and well merited 
pageant. 

Your Committee also desire, before closing the labors 
of their report, to state, that as solemnities of an appro- 
priate and imposing character were celebrated in the city 
of Brooklyn, by order of the corporate authorities, upon 
the evening of the day on which the obsequies were per- 
formed in this city, in a manner commensurate with their 
sincere and devoted attachment to the illustrious deceased ; 
and upon this, as well as on all former occasions of this 
character, the Common Council and citizens of Brooklyn 
were efficient participants in the obsequies of our mutually 

236 



riTiiiiiuM.., 



iteni\(| Clql). 



'•" 



respected and lamented dead, 30ur Committee deem the 
subject and its interests, in this connection, so closely 
allied as to demand some proper consideration at their 
hands, and the official ])roceedings of that body, adopted 
upon that occasion, together with the ceremonies, should 
occupy a space in this report; therefore, in accordance 
with these views, your Committee present the following 

PROCEEDINGS IN BROOKLYN. 



COMMON COUNCIL.— SPECIAL MEETING. 



THL'RSDAY, JULY 1st, 1852. 

A special meeting of the Common Council was held 
this evening, for the purpose of taking some action rela- 
tive to the death of Henry Clay. On the assembling 
of the Board, the following communication from the Mayor 
was submitted : 

Gentlemen : — The country has been called to lament 
the loss of one of its most illustrious citizens. A states- 
man, to whom the eyes of the nation have been turned for 
counsel in every hour of peril and disaster for nearly the 
last half century, has closed his brilliant and honorable 
career of public service, and has ceased to be of earth. 
Henry Clay, a Senator of the United States, from the 
State of Kentucky, died at the city of Washington on the 
29th of June last. The feeling of public sorrow for this 
national bereavement is so universal and profound, that 

237 



I9lis!c(]i|»es of 



nTiiiii hi 




you will, no doubt, feel called upon to make some public 
and suitable expression of the sentiments of this commu- 
nity on the occasion. I shall be happy to concur with you 
in whatever measures may be deemed appropriate to do 
honor to the memory of the lamented and venerated dead, 
and justice to the emotions of a people proud of his fame, 
and stricken with a deep sense of a great public loss. 

Eespectfully yours, 

CONKLIN BRUSH, Mayor. 

Aldermen Marvin, Fowler and Harteau made some 
brief and appropriate remarks on the subject of the com- 
munication, when, on motion. Aldermen Marvin, Fowler, 
Morris, Harteau, Spinola and Baylis were appointed a 
a committee to draft resolutions expressive of the sense of 
the Board, who, after a short deliberation, reported the 
following: 

Wkei^eas, This Commcm Council having been officially 
informed of the decease at Washington, on the 29th of 
June last, of Henry Clay, and desiring, with feelings of 
profound sensibility, to unite with their fellow-citizens 
throughout the land in the general expression of sorrow 
for a great national bereavement, in the loss of one of the 
most distinguished citizens of the Republic; it is therefore 

Resolved, That this Common Council, representing a 
community in which the name of Henry Clay has long 
been known and cherished, desires to place upon the 
records of the city an expression of its sense of the ex- 
alted character of the departed patriot and statesman. 
Commencing his career in the service of the United 
States as a senator in 1806; in 1852, at the close of nearly 

238 



tU»i\(| t^ii|(j 



'I'.W.u. 



half a century of diversified and brilliant civic employ- 
ments, death found him there at his post, and he fell with 
his "harness on" — " without fear and without reproach." 
(Greatness, as applied to Henry Clay, was a word of 
large significance. He was a great lawyer; a great 
patriot; a great statesman, a great orator, and combining 
the radiance of all these distinguished titles to admira- 
tion and honor, he was, in the most general and highest 
sense, a truly noble and great man. His laurels were 
never wet with the tears of widows and orphans, and his 
trophies have never cost the nation its treasure or its 
blood. These free United States, whose prosperity has 
been advanced, and whose union has been cemented bv his 
wisdom, will hereafter, with eyes purged from the mists of 
party prejudice, read the glorious annals which record his 
brilliant career with pride, in his comprehensive views of 
public policy; in his integrity; in his unfaltering courage, 
and in his unwavering fidelity in the long, difficult and 
dangerous path of public life which he trod, will hold up 
his example for the study and imitation of their ingenuous 
youth, and their rising statesmen; and will, through all 
the coming ages of the Republic, cherish his as 

" One of the few immortal names 
That were not born to die." 



Resolved, That it be referred to a Special Committee of 
six, to make arrangements for the delivery, before this 
Common Council, and our fellow-citizens, of a discourse 
u})on the life and services of Hexry Clay, and to make 
such arrangements as they may think proper. 

In pursuance of the foregoing resolution, the undersigned 

would respectfully announce to their fellow-citizens and 

2:;9 





'' Obsetjiiieg of 



riTilTmiiiui 



others, that the Rev. Samuel H. Cox, D. D., will deliver 
a discourse on the life and services of Henry Clay, in the 
Second Presbyterian Church, Clinton street, (under the 
pastoral charge of the Rev. I. S. Spencer, D. I).,) on Tues- 
day, 20th inst., at 8 o'clock, p. m. 

The Committee respectfully recommend his Honor the 
Mayor, to issue his proclamation, suggesting to the citizens 
to close their places of business on the afternoon of that 
day, and to attend the evening services in honor of the 
lamented dead. 

Abm. B. Baylis, 
Chas. R. Marvin, 
C. C. Fowler, 
Frederick Morris, 
Henry Harteau, 
F. B. Spinola, 

Special Coin, of Arrangeinents. 






proclamation. 

Mayor's Office, 
Brooklyn, July 17, 1852. 

The citizens are recommended to unite in the public ser- 
vices, on Tuesday evening, the 20th of July, at 8 o'clock, at 
the church of the Rev. Dr. Spencer, in honor of the mem- 
ory of Henry Clay, and to close their places of business 
during the afternoon of that day. A discourse, commemo- 
rative of Mr. Clay's distinguished services and career, has 
been deemed more appropriate than a public pageant, to 
express the profound and universal sorrow of our citizens, 









on occasion of an irreparable national loss, in the decease 
of the great American statesman. 

CONKLIN BRUSH, Mayor. 

Pursuant to the foregoing unanimous action of the Com- 
mon Council, a very large and respectable auditory assem- 
bled in the Second Presbyterian Church, generously offered 
for the purpose. His Honor, Conklin Brush, Mayor, 
presiding; the Common Council, with officers of the Army 
and Navy, and other distinguished citizens participating. 
The impressive ceremonies were commenced with the fol- 
lowing impressive 

frapr, 

which was offered up to the Throne of Grace by the Rev. 
George "W. Bethune, D. D. 

Lord, Thou art God alone; before the mountains were 
brought forth, or ever Thou didst form the earth and the 
sea, Thou wert alone in Thy glory and perfections, and 
from Thy will all things have come. Thou callest man into 
being, and when Thou hast served Thy purposes with him 
upon earth. Thou sendest him again to the dust, and bring- 
est his spirit before Thee into judgment. There is none 
that can stay Thy hand, none that can escape the purpose 
of Thy will. It becometh us, Lord, to bow down before 
Thee at this time, in remembrance of Thy majesty and of 
our littleness. Thou alone art the Author, and the Pre- 
server, and the Governor and the Judge. We come to 
Thee in this hour of solemn warning and affliction. "We 
come bending our hearts, as we trust to receive the lessons 
which Thou teachest, and beseeching Thee to grant us the 

IG 241 






' 0bse(]i(ies of 






blessings which we need. We give Thee thanks, God, 
that from Thy high, majestic throne. Thou hast taken notice 
of Thy people. Especially do we, dwellers in this land, give 
Thee thanks for Thy favor to our fathers in all their his- 
tory; in their settlement of this commonwealth, in their 
struggles for freedom, in their laying the foundation of this 
government, and the j^reservation of it amidst all the vicis- 
situdes which are inevitable from the imperfections of man. 
We thank Thee that Thou didst lay the basis of our insti- 
tutions deep in the hearts of the people; that Thou hast 
permitted them to build upon that foundation a superstruc- 
ture so massive and so lofty. Blessed be Thy name, 
Lord; for unless Thou bulkiest the city, those that build it 
work in vain. We thank Thee that our fathers cared for 
their country; and devoted their interests, and affection, 
and time, to the institutions of their native land. In Thy 
hands are the hearts of all men. From Thee have come 
our statesmen, our rulers, our orators, and all those who 
have contributed to build up this land; all those who have 
been permitted to serve their country. Especially at this 
time would we bow down before Thee, and while we ac- 
knowledge this severe aflQiction which Thy hand hath made 
the country to feel, we would thank Thee that Thou didst 
raise him up and qualify his mind, and Thou didst enlarge 
his heart and give to him a talent and an inclination to do 
all these things for his country, which have tended to its 
prosperity. We thank Thee that Thou hast granted unto 
us now the memory of one who was faithful to that land 
which he served. We thank Thee that Thy people of all 
parties and opinions may meet together, and with sincerity 
mourn over the dust of him for whom these pageants of 
mourning have been raised to-day. We thank Thee, 

242 



ifei]HjCiq(| 




God, for liim, and for those who have been associated with 




him in time when the crisis of our nation's interests re- 
quired self-sacrificing- men to secure the welfare of the 
whole nation, and to l)ind in stronger union tlie various 
■ parties of this mighty confederacy, in the arch upon which 
the political liberties of the world are built. And we thank 
Thee that Thou didst shed the consolations of the Gospel 
through his mind, and that he whose life was one of con- 
stant toil and agitation, was permitted quietly and sweetly 
to expire in the hope of a glorious immortality. Blessed 
be God that we may receive through that darkness which 
hangs over the tomb, the anticipation of the bliss which is 
beyond. Yea, that we may have faith, by knowing that 
he who sleeps in Jesus, God will bring with him. We thank 
Thee that we are permitted to ask of Thee to continue Thy 
favors to our beloved land; that thou wouldst raise up 
from time to time, men of good counsel, of honest hearts 
and determined courage, who shall fearlessly and untiring- 
ly pursue the right. Remember the prayers of those who 
founded this nation, in their zeal, for Thy name. Remem- 
ber the prayers of Thy people, which go up to Thee from 
the pulpit, the fireside, and the closet, calling down Thy 
blessing upon this land, incomparably more favored than 
ever Israel was. We arc sinners before Thee, and now 
feel the truth that sentence of death hath passed upon all 
men, we are subject to that sentence which came into the 
world by sin. Sanctify our hearts by Thy peace, that we 
may live humbly mindful of death. Amen. 



^ 



^^ 





ON THE LIFE AND CHARACTER OF THE LATE 

HON. HENRY CLAY 

DELIVERED BEFORE THE 

MAYOR AND COMMON COUNCIL OF BROOKLYN, AND A LARGE ASSEMBLAGE OF CITIZENS, 

BY 

SAMUEL HANSON COX, D. D. 



^ 




videbatur omnino mori non debuisse — 

Mr. Mayor, Members of the Common Council, 
AND other Honored and Intelligent 

Persons present, Ladies and Gentlemen: 

We have met on a rare and a solemn occasion ! Our 
nation celebrates the funeral of Henry Clay. Our loss is 
national. Not many a Washington, or a Lafayette, or 
an Adams, or a Clay, had our country to lose. Such 
statesmen, such heroes, such patriots, such champions, such 
useful and distinguished and exemplary citizens, are not to 
be found frequent in any country. Ours has had her full 
and appropriate share of great men. Her firmament is 
rich with constellations, and each of these adorned with 
stars of the first magnitude. Hereafter, not Kentucky, 
but America, not the party, but the nation, claims Henry 
Clay, as her own. Alas ! that she mourns him dead, be- 
cause with the fleeting and inconstant minority alive, he 
ceases to be numbered. 

244 



3^ 



aSBBE 



Pni!Imliii,i ~ 



In obedience to your call, my honored hearers, I stand 
before you, willing to meet the awe-inspiring occasion, 
with what I l)cst may offer ; not without the subduing 
consciousness of my incompetency to do it justice. I re- 
spond, honored civic Fathers of Brooklyn, and fellow-cit- 
izens, under the fond ideas that we are together performing 
one of the high duties of patriotism; that this social and 
moral service is done and due to the collective interests of 
our country, our great, our beloved, our whole country; 
that it is proper, useful, and sublimely national; that all 
these observances and commemorations are beneficial and 
cementing to our mighty and our magnificent union; that 
we are enacting, in these tributary honors, what the Great 
Fathers and Founders of the Republic, what Washing- 
ton, and Franklin, and Hamilton, would approve; that 
every concert movement of this moral and patriotic sort, 
tends natively to consolidate the strength, and to assimi- 
late the members, and to render homogeneous for good all 
the correlated portions and sections of our vast and our won- 
derful confederacy; that with it we profitably lose the lit- 
tleness of sectionalism, in the expansive sympathies of our 
vast and united country, realizing, in the conscious imprint 
of our mingled hearts, the conservative, and the economic 
grandeur of our noble national motto, which our bird im- 
perial, grasping the arrows and the bolts of war in one 
talon, and in the other, this the dexter, waving the olive 
branch of peace preferred; which motto, I say, our soaring 
eagle, with pinions spread among the stars of heaven, lifts 
to the gaze and the admiration of the universe— e pluribus 
unum! Yes! the idea that in this we forget, for an au- 
spicious season, all that is little and local and partial; 
know no east, no west, no north, no south, no distinc- 

245 



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it 



!!|i"Ui. 



crSf" 



m 



^ 



m 



tion of ocean boundaries or mountain ranges, liquefied in- 
deed with the grief of patriotism and confluent in the feel- 
ings of funereal sympathy, we celebrate the death of Clay, 
our lofty senator; we solemnize his exit, as that of another 
of the great patriarchs of our common country, and do this 
in concert simultaneous with millions of our countrymen; 
this idea befits us, ennobles us, benefits the nation, makes 
us united and assimilated more, is proper in all relations, 
and even our divine Christianity sanctions and inspires 
this homage, in its wide spread and memorable and excel- 
lent magnificence. 

We have privileges as citizens of this country, dignities, 
and consequent duties too, at once ennobling and stupen- 
dous, which are equally enjoyed by no other people under 
heaven. As Christians and worshippers of the true God, 
how precious to the enlightened mind, how good and how 
paramount, are our civic and political liberties ! And 
how base and abominable, to possess them with no grati- 
tude, with no appreciation, with no sensibility. And what 
is it better than squalid degradation, and criminal selfish- 
ness, to occupy and enjoy these high advantages, with no 
generous sentiment, either to the Sovereign of the Universe, 
who vouchsafes to confer them on us, or to those proximate 
instruments of his beneficence, through whom, and by whose 
vigilance and care and skill and faithfulness, under God, 
we derive and retain them all. With this view, my re- 
spected hearers, are we ready to denounce the man, of soul 
so dead, could we find him in our city or our country — yet 
would I not accuse any portion of our happy land of har- 
boring the monster, who thinks that he owes no gratitude 
to our departed senator; who grudges these honors to his 
hearse; who feels no grief, no sense of bereavement, in 

246 





common with the nation and the world, at the funeral of 
IIexry Clay — we denounce him, as unfit to live in our 
country, as an ingrate, or a simpleton, or a traitor. 

If such tlicre live, go mark Lim well ; 
For him no minstrel raptures tell. 
High though his titles, proud his name, 
Boundless his wealth as Avish may claim ; 
Despite those titles, power, and jielf, 
The wretch concentred all in self, 
Living, shall forfeit fair renown. 
And, doubly dying, shall go down, 
To the vile dust from whence lie sprung, 
L^nwept, unhonored and unsung. 



Our theme was an American of the Americans. He was 
an exemplar, and a noble specimen of genuine American 
greatness. Born to no princely fortune, the scion of no 
factitious family honors, he was, under God, as he was ever 
fond to confess, the architect of his own high fortunes, the 
maker of his own large patent of nobility, the honest earner 
of his own accomplished fame. He rose from obscurity, 
from poverty, from orphanage, and even from a very lim- 
ited education, to rank among the first and the most esti- 
mable of human personages, beloved by his countrymen 
and celebrated through the world. He rose legitimately; 
not by ignominious boasting, or mercenary patronage, or 
the caprice of prodigies and events, or by flattering the 
populace, or by the flooded puissance of bribes, or by some 
coup d'etat of revolutionary exigence, or by cunning and 
the low arts of demagogism; but — hear it, ye ingenuous 
and aspiring youth of our country, Henry Clay rose by 
industry, by assiduous application, by honesty, by consis- 
tency, by deserving the confidence of the people, by study- 
ing and pursuing the true interests of his country, by evinc- 

217 



a 




TJimJlilliilliHitilli"" I -ii- ..!.■. ^ 

,■' Ohgccjiiies of '' 



imii'M . 




ti 



ing what lie was, so that enemies had to own it, by prac- 
tical wisdom, by love of liberty, by illustrating the true 
Diature of American statesmanship, by vivid alertness in the 
cause of humanity, by enlightened and devout attachment 
to the interests of the nation ; by studying and mastering 
the full philosophy of constitutional law, and bodying the 
Constitution in his living conduct; by unfeigned attach- 
ment to our noble and inviolable national Union; by self- 
sacrificing devotion to the vernacular cause, whenever he 
apprehended its true interest, or its latent foe, or its real 
danger; by being justly and on proper occasions superior to 
popular clamor, where he knew and could distinguish be- 
tween the hosannahs of the mob and the fame of history; 
by loving party only for his country's sake, and utterly for- 
going it, when it seemed to stand in his country's way; by 
illustrating, dignus discipulus dignissimo patre, the princi- 
ples of the school of Washington; and by maintaining 
those principles, effulgent and true, throughout his whole 
career of public life. Added to this, indeed, we are to 
credit his rare endowments and capacities, his form and 
bearing, his natural and oaken eloquence, his grandeur of 
person and persuasion of address, his nurture among the 
people, his nativity and growth in this country, and the 
formative times and crises both of the chivalrous young 
State of his adoption, and the prodigious and wonder- 
working country of his birth and his affections — his Ken- 
tucky and his America. And last, not least, in this mighty 
host of consecutive influences, his general instinct and 
homage in favor of religion; his sense, luminous and manly, 
of dependence on the providence and care of the Supreme 
Being — his accountability to God, the truth of the Bible, 
the mission of the Savior, the destinations of eternity. 

248 



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1'!'''' 


it* 


M)i\q 


eiiuiTil 


BMIQLIIIn,,,. 



This last was a mig'lity element of liis cliaracter— even 
when he quenched its flame, counterworked its proper 
effects by yielding to temptation, and sinned consciously, 
as alas ! such millions do, against its tenderness, its per- 
suasion, and its warning voice. Still, Henry Clay was 
no infidel. In his deviations, it was not his way to 
disparage and condemn religion, in order to frame an ex- 
cuse for himself. He knew that religion was no pensioner 
on human opinion, or praise, or conduct; men depending 
on it, not it on men; it depending alone on God, its author 
and avenger; and God depending on himself alone — 
rather, depending not at all, the Being of Beings, existino- 
absolute, necessary, immutable, perfect, eternal, Jehovah. 
For the last half century, identified so nearly with the 
first half of the nineteenth century, so pregnant with great 
events throughout all Christendom, the events of our polit- 
ical history as a nation, in peace and in war, in prosperity 
and in adversity, in tranquillity and in agitation, in security 
and in fear, in hope and in despondency— their history 
could not be written without writing also the biography 
of Henry Clay. He was complicated with them, perpet- 
ually, prominently, practically, usefully, honorably — and 
whether in office and in public, or as a citizen and a pa- 
triot in private. Without a correct knowledge of the 
deeds of John Quincy Adams, Henry Clay and Daniel 
Webster, that great national triumvirate, no man could 
•write the history of that distinguished period. And no 
man could judge correctly of their public acts, especially 
— shall I say — of the acts of Mr. Clay, without some ex- 
pansive comprehension at once of the state of the country, 
its relation to other nations, and the peculiar principles of 
its political organization, so wonderfully and yet harmo- 

249 




(!^bsLM]i|ics of 



niously constituted and compounded, as a nation of na- 
tions, or a State of States, thirty-one from thirteen, and 
to be augmented by still greater accessions from our vast 
territories. Here, to understand a part, one must under- 
stand the whole; and act at once for the interests of the 
immense national body, and for those of each related and 
constituent member. Here impulse is often in conflict 
with wisdom; partial regards are seemingly irreconcila- 
ble with those provincial or universal; the strength of 
government tends to operate menacingly in collision with 
popular rights; and the balance of power, and the adjust- 
ment of interests, in so multifarious an administration, is no 
problem for boys to solve, or for men of one idea, or even 
for empyrics and parvenues of five ! or for any thing short 
of illumined American statesmanship, in full conjunction 
with sound patriotism and large experience and resolute 
integrity. Beside, what we often forget in the plain, of 
the men whom we, the people, place on the summit of the 
pyramid of office, as our servants and our targets, as well 
as our spectacles and our themes of calumny, we solemnly 
swear them, when they take office, to abide by the consti- 
tution, to be incorruptible and impartial, and to seek the 
common good of the people, even against their importuni- 
ties, and in spite of their criticisms and complaints, for the 
moment. This is no easy task for sentient flesh and blood 
to perform — and when I think of this, justice tells me, to 
respect the rulers and the magistrates of my country; to 
construe kindly, and magnanimously, and with liberal al- 
lowance, all their public acts, and even their private con- 
duct; to pray for them, and to remember that it is one thing 
to supersede them in office, and often quite another to re- 
place them with their superiors. 

250 



WrM„V!TP 



'■Hl'.liii 



ifei^l-ijGI^H. 



Will the episode be allowed me, not wholly inappropri- 
ate, if I venture to remind you of ten great principles, 
which are properly fundamental to all others, in the ixox- 
ernment of our country — a decade of main principles, with- 
out honoring" which, wc may boldly aver, no man is lit for 
office in it, unless inconsistency and perjury arc among the 
prime of his qualifications; principles, we believe, which 
no man better understood and exemplified than our exalted 
senator and statesman; and without approving which, no 
man is competent to judge his acts or qualified to under- 
stand them; and to oppose which, ought to be a brand on 
the face of any citizen, who in that way should practice 
implicit treason, deserving a sentence of popular relega- 
tion from the country, still too good to harbor such a par- 
ricide in the capacious and genial bosom of its own out- 
raged maternity. 

1. All governments on earth, as fabrics, human in form 
and movement, all political organizations and administra- 
tions, as history too copiously shows, are imperfect; and 
hence though improvements are to be expected, and wisely 
sought and attempted, in the progressions of society, yet 
perfection, as a practical reality, will not be enjoyed in 
the present world. 

2. The character of government is therefore compara- 
tive, as better or worse, on a scale of many gradations; 
while that of our country, we Avell and wisely accredit, as 

relatively the least faulty, and therefore the best in the 
world. 

8. The Union of our States in one grand nationality, 
is the great fundamental and the normal and the indispen- 
sable condition, at once of our strength, and our safety, 
and our perpetuity, and our prosperity, if not properly of 






^ 

^m 



~^<--t'-ll» .l.-uiiuu;iiii |BprTi,,ll,Tim|V=-^ 



(9bsccli|ic3 of 



[hiiiilll 




our being', as a people, and a nation, and a powerful re- 
public among the nations of the earth. 

4. In order to this, concessions and compromises, as well 
as faithful covenant-keeping, are absolutely necessary, 
among the causes sine qua non of our confederated and our 
national existence. 

5. The supremacy of mind over matter, that is the sub- 
ordination of the military to the civil power, the sword to 
the pen, the army and the navy to the law-making and the 
law-interpreting and the law-executing functions; so that 
the proper magistracy of the country shall be the central 
mind of its government ; this is Americanism, this our 

WISDOM. 

6. The inviolableness of the Constitution, with the just 
interpretation and the due performance of all its provisions. 

7. The moral omnipotence of law; which, as law, is not 
to be resisted anywhere; but must ever be despotic and 
supreme, while it remains law; or, the rights of the people 
are gone, protection is defunct, and the individual is neither 
safe, nor free, at home or abroad, in seclusion or in society. 

8. The subordinate independence and distinct sover- 
eignty of each state in the confederacy, with all its con- 
stitutional prerogatives and rights, in its own jurisdiction 
and sphere. 

9. The rights of legislation, representation, petition, and 
free speech, to all; with that of the ballot-box, as the mas- 
terly resource of freemen. 

10. Religious freedom, with Church and State mutually 
related and serviceable, but not united; and the rights of 
conscience universally and impartially protected. 

Let a man digest these principles, before he presumes to 
censure our great statesmen, who, for generations and for 

252 



iTTillUll.lm. 




ages now, and in times of peril and experiment, when pre- 
cedents were less to be followed than created, have figured 
with honor and consistency in the service of their country. 
Their posts have been difficult, their duties arduous, their 
perils formidable, their acts stupendous, and their great 
success a glorious innovation on the scroll of universal 
history. As for Henry Clay — great without our highest 
office, I feel profoundly how much, under God, the whole 
nation is his debtor; and now, to pay that debt, is for- 
ever impossible. History will write his culogium. Pos- 
terity will do him justice. 

His country's heart is liis funeral urn — 
And should sculptured stone be denied him, 

There will his name be found, when in turn 
We lay our heads beside him. 

Henry Clay was born in Virginia, that state of so 
many classic nativities and renowned memories in our 
country's annals, on the twelfth of April, seventeen hundred 
and seventy-seven, in the commencement of the war, about 
nine months after the Declaration of Independence. He 
was the son of a worthy clergyman, whose early exit, left 
him in tender years to the care and kindness of a worthy 
mother — bless her memory ! who laid the foundation of 
all that was good and great in his maturer life, by sowing 
in a rich soil the seeds of Christian wisdom; thence illus- 
trating the excellent stanza of Watts, 

Though seed lie buried long in dust 

It shant deceive the hope; 
The precious grain can ne'er be lost 

For grace insures the crop. 

He struirgled with no common difficulties in his nurture 
and development — 'but I am not his biographer, in this 
rapid sketch of approximations. His success was such as 

253 



0bsecli|ies of 



t»l\Wni, 




wealth and outward prosperity could never have secured . 
to him. Adversity, a rude nurse, but oft a useful one, 
trained him and developed him, as no palace could, for 
great thoughts and mighty deeds. 

His mind was distinguished for originality and strength. 
His intelligence was sound and his knowledge digested 
and accurate. His magnanimity was proverbial, the better 
counterpart of his large majestic frame. His courage was 
not fool-hardy or inconsiderate; but there was enough of 
it, always of the right kind, to meet any emergency. His 
self-command was remarkable. He fixed it in his mind, 
that, to lose his balance would never assist his strength or 
aid his victory; and few men have lived with a compos sui 
more rational and philosophic, or more commonly " har- 
nessed in order serviceable." In the forum, or among sur- 
rounding and enthusiastic multitudes, or in the House of 
Representatives, or the Speaker's chair, or the senate "grave 
with primate wisdom," he was always sure of his identity 
as Henry Clay; with character, and plan, and object, and 
principle, that made others sure of the same. His perse- 
verance was wonderful and his power of achievement was 
its result. His natural eloquence was real; but like De- 
mosthenes and Cicero and Burke and Ames, he tried to 
make five talents ten — and he succeeded. His eloquence 
is a vernacular model; and many an unborn youth will it 
yet inspire, and many a young politician shall it hereafter 
discipline, to feel that, in a legitimate way, they also can 
rise, can be something, and do something, for the country, 
to vindicate their title to the honors of American birth- 
right and American citizenship. And who could be an ex- 
emplar or a counselor, for our youthful Americans, more 
safe, more true, more just, more noble than Henry Clay. 

254 



fnTimmn;::- - - 



It were worthy of a master liand to portray our illustrious 
statesman, in some of those scenes of peril and perplexity, 
as of honor and conspicuity and noble service to his coun- 
try, in which ho at once figured well, and acted gallantly, 
and was greatly tried, and showed in the result eminently 
prosperous, and enviably victorious, in the memorable 
arena. A few of these I select and mention, though I scarce 
can venture more. I pass all the initial stages of his ardent 
juvenility and his chivalrous behavior; all the scenery of his 
introduction to public life and the councils of his country; 
all the ways in which he conciliated the love and the con- 
fidence of his countrymen, and won the admiration of man- 
kind; all his development and rise in congress, and all his 
popularity in the nation at large; and mention only a few 
of the maturer and the later passages of his history, in 
which, with many others, I own that I have peculiarly ad- 
mired him. 

1. At the treaty of Ghent, as one of the five American 
Commissioners, by whose wise and masterly diplomacy 
PEACE was negotiated. His colleagues were John Quincy 
Adams, Albert Gallatin, James A. Bayard and Jona- 
than Russell; and their British opponents were the Right 
Honorable Lord Gambier, and the Honorable Henry 
GouLBURN and William Adams. In that august conven- 
tion, while the American power and tact were radiant and 
ascendant, inspiring a just deference in the British Commis- 
sioners which they did not anticipate; while each of the five 
that represented America, was excellent in some peculiar 
way, and all combined were quite superior to all the antag- 
onist forces on the part of King George, that is, the Prince 
Regent, it is well known that the influence and power of 
Henry Clay were much credited and renowned in the ar- 

255 




(i)bs(j()i|ies of 



^ 




duous process and the pacific result. True indeed, the state 
of things in Europe and some casual events conspired to fa- 
vor pacification. The cabinets of the continent, in conjunc- 
tion with that of insular Europe, were all astir with ominous 
preparation; alliances were forming, and armies preparing, 
and prognostications circulating about the state of things 
and their drear issues, just before the great battle of 
Waterloo, which achieved the downfall of Napoleon : and 
now it was quite inconvenient for England to be at war in 
any other direction. But— none the less were the talent 
and the bravery of our Commissioners to be esteemed and 
praised, as more than a match for their opponents in the 
whole engagement. It is sufiicieut for my purpose in this 
sketch to add, that among his peers the genius and the ad- 
dress of Clay did signal service to our cause. They all 
figured in the eye of Europe and the world; they were all 
well selected and admirably combined; but among them 
Henry Clay, primus inter pares, if not facile princeps, 
exerted a commanding influence, is said to have impressed 
usefully the British negotiators, and was owned by his col- 
leagues as having contributed greatly to the happy con- 
summation. 

2. After his return, his services to the country were still 
continued and still distinguished, eminently masterly and 
eminently beneficial; till, on the accession of Mr. Adams 
to the Presidency in 1825, Mr. Clay accepted the office 
of Secretary of State — and however misunderstood and 
misrepresented in that entire transaction, it is now con- 
fessed and known, that no bargain, no corruption, no collu- 
sion, no duplicity, but only reasonable and honorable man- 
agement, at the time, constrained him, in accepting a seat 
in the cabinet of Mr. Adams, as in ordering or aiding the 

256 



MM!-*''«''-i 'i-i-i [..sgaffi 




operation of the antecedents that led to it. He filled the 
office with no injury, but only with increasing tributes to 
his culminating fame, and the good of his country. 

3. In 1844 his name was before the people in the presi- 
dential canvass. I name this, passing many allied topics 
that obtrude themselves on our recollection, only to say, 
not that after a close and perilous contest, his friends and 
voters were defeated, but that the manner in which he bore 
the disappointment, evinced magnificently the superiority 
of the great national patriarch, who had other resources and 
compensations than popular appreciation, and who, we 
know, " had rather be right than be President." Was 
he sullen or morose; did he retire in the spirit of vindic- 
tive misanthropy; was his patriotism worn out or its oc- 
cupation gone? none of these ! He was Henry Clay af- 
terward; only emerging from the civic agony, more a phi- 
losopher, more the genuine son of the nation, more the 
American Nestor, than he was before ! To such a noble 
of the republic, the presidential chair could confer no 
greatness; to such a patriot, a kingly throne would be a 
degradation. 

4. In 1850, though now in his seventy-fourth year, the 
infirmities of age requiring his release from fatigue and 
care amid the rural solaces of his loved Ashland, his tran- 
quil, hospitable home, yet it was a national crisis; and 
Henry Clay was at his post, with Webster, and Fill- 
more, and other men of might, at Washington, meeting 
that crisis, and elaborately effectuating the pacification of 
the country. Oh ! it Avas a time of gloom and perplexity. 
Questions complicated Avere to be met and resolved, rela- 
tions in many a labyrinth were to be harmonized, friends 
and foes to conciliate, north and south to be affianced in a 

17 257 





mutual and inviolable pact, concessions and compromises 
adjusted, and the wliole completed, defended, enacted, till 
in eventful consummation the whole was done and estab- 
lished. And for this, shall we censure and denounce him, 
or praise and thank him only ? Here indeed opinions vary 
— since men of impulse, party, short-sightedness, prejudice, 
of one idea — or at most of two or three, are all at variance 
with him; nor am I the one to re-echo their tirades of mal- 
ediction, their vile and blasphemous opprobriums. The 
casuistry of the matter is in the abstract here — half a loaf 
is better than no bread, especially to a starving man; bet- 
ter tliis, with some deductions and privations entailed, than 
blood and murder and civil war inaugurated in all tlie na- 
tion; this, rather than a worse alternative, an infinitely 
worse one; this, when the worse was the only alternative — 
and all men of reflection and serenity knew it, felt it, appre- 
ciated it, and did in the circumstances the best they could ! 

Yes ! says one, but why not set the slaves all free at 
once, and be done with it? sure enough — and why does 
not the querist do it himself? He is just exactly as able 
to do it, as was Henry Clay. Shame to the wicked sim- 
pletons. Mr. Clay knew what he was about, was superior 
to the asinine clamor and objurgation which he both antici- 
pated and compassionated or despised. He did the best 
he could in the circumstances and relations in which he 
acted, with such far-reaching wisdom, such comprehension, 
such vigor, such consistency, and such resulting good to 
all concerned, that now the whole nation are beginning to 
see and own it — and woe to the busy pragmatical lunatic, 
who attempts wildly to disturb that result or to do mis- 
chief in the premises in any other way ! 

5. See him again in his own death chamber, last winter 

253 




'..AM '.',., .WW- 



j' 



Pmmhii 



tfer)i\(| Cigij. 



iit^i',.3^ 



in his interview with Kossuth. " As a dying man I de- 
nounce your doctrine and your plan of intervention," said 
he, to the startled Hungarian Governor. There it is, mul- 
TUM IX PARVo! I denounce it too. What! are we to go 
a crusade to set things right, at the point of the bayonet, 
in all Europe, and in all the world? and this with the 
stupid self-contradictory paradox of — Intervention for 
THE SAKE of NON-INTERVENTION ? This I hopc will be ad- 
ministered, if at all, in very infinitesimal doses; though its 
grand principle would reverse the apophthegm of similia 
siMiLiBUS CURANTUR. Our doctrinc, as taught us by Wash- 
ington and all the fathers of the republic, is far better — 

FREE INTERCOURSE WITH ALL NATIONS; ENTANGLING ALLI- 
ANCES WITH NONE. Should wc march to Hungary, or to 
Vienna, or St. Petersburgh, in the cause of the Great 
Magyar, we could soon do a wholesale business in that way. 
We might stop at France on our march, and teach their 
young nephew of his uncle some lessons of duty about 
keeping his oath of office to the adjourned republic. We 
could find also some employment for our reforming arms 
in England itself — and then in Italy, in Greece, in Turkey, 
and a thousand other places. No ! Our .wisdom is to 
keep clear the logic and the rhetoric of our republican ex- 
ample. This will teach lessons that must convince even 
tyrants themselves. It will go where electricity itself can- 
not follow it — into the consciences of all men. This we 
can always consistently and legitimately do, and none can 
blame, none refute us. The other plan — quixotic as well 
as impracticable, would exhaust our national resources, 
waste our blood and our treasure'in foreign continents and 
oceans, insure signal and ignominious defeat, make us the 
laughing-stock of Europe and the pity of the world. Some- 

259 



insnniiu 



0b3e^i(ic3 of 



times indeed our example may be specially direct, and even 
aggressive, in its action. We may serve them with some 
documentary American logic, like that of the immortal 
HuLLSEMAN paper, in which our Great Secretary of State, 
with characteristic thunder in a clear sky, or visible light- 
ning in the darkness of a transatlantic atmosphere, uttered 
the protest of freemen with consternation to the smitten 
heart of despotism. 

Look again to his death-bed chamber and reconnoiter 
with me, that memorable scene — contemplate it, so pictur- 
esque, so characteristic, so instructive, such a lesson for 
our country, such a demonstration of wisdom, and courage, 
and sincerity, truly American ! Were I a painter, or a 
gifted artist of the chisel, and endowed with fame-enact- 
ing genius, as a Guido, a Rubens, a Vandyck, a Raphael, 
a Phidias, or a Praxiteles, that scene should always 
speak to posterity. The breathing marble, or the sculp- 
tured stone, or the grouping and more social canvas, 
should rehearse the lesson, with lucid and impressive and 
almost living, certainly enduring eloquence, to unborn 
generations of Americans. What a scene of grandeur, 
I repeat it, for some favored devotee of the fine arts — 
who is at the same time an intelligent lover of his coun- 
try ! It might be done, with power intelligible and electric. 
It has in it all the elements that should stimulate native 
talent and reward artistic enterprise, and make, for its 
own graphic achievement, a coronation, and an ovation in 
country — elements of sublimity, of sapient instruction, 
patriotic statesmansliip, of Christian self-possession, of 
aculous solemnity, of fortitude invincible snd of un- 
angeable policy, and of example national, stupendous, 
nanimous, never to be forgotten; anticipating, for the 

2C0 




,V itei])\q tliiij 



HlTTPiriiM.,. 





reproductive art, that immortality of fame, which the excel- 
lence of the sentiment, so deservedly national, so justly 
American, must receive at last from the sober and the hon- 
orary registrations of history. 

Kossuth indeed advocated the noble doctrine of the so- 
dality of nations — and with him we both admire and be- 
lieve it; nay, in a qualified sense, we go it with him — ])ut, 
in his way, not at all ! No, indeed ! Our wisdom is still 
identified, on the contrary, with that of the Farewell 
Address of the Father op his Country; which we brook 
no stranger to expound, or rectify, or pervert, for us. Our 
doctrine is at once with that protest of the dying senator; 
and as such, orthodox, tried, American. 

We laud the sentiment ; 1)ut, for the way, 
The Great Magyar we doubt — and more obey 
Our Washi:vgton^, our Webster, and our Clay. 

6. It remains, for a moment, to contemplate Henry 
Clay in the chamber of death; where, prisoned so long, he 
could meditate, and pray, and seek his God, with the sol- 
emn consciousness that soon he must appear, accountable 
before him ! Yes ! and this, we think, with reason, he did. 
God dealt with him in merciful loving-kindness. Gradual 
was the approach of death, the last enemy; and its illapse 
was gentle, gradual, seen only in result, " as sinks the 
summer's sun in cloudless sky." There, with his ser- 
vant and his pastor, he received the communion; professed 
his faith and his hope in Jesus Christ alone; confessed, 
with humiliation, his sins; and on his bended knees, when 
he could, and on his bed when this was all his strength al- 
lowed, before the apprehended and holy majesty of Al- 
mighty God, only wise, and in the name of the gracious 
Redeemer and Savior of the lost, who came into the world 

261 



V 0b3c^nies of 



IMnuu^ 



to save sinners, even the chief, who died for us on the cross, in 
whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of 
sins according to the riches of his grace, he often and devoutly 
prayed, for pardoning grace and full salvation; he prayed 
for his friends, for his country, for the Church of God, for 
the world of man, commending himself and all he chiefly 
loved and valued, to the grace and care of our Father and 
our God, our Sovereign and our Savior, forever. 

And now, what shall we'say ? I answer with two con- 
cessions — He had faults and sins; — He had foes hardly to 
be placated or reconciled. 

How could a man so eminent as Clay 

Not be a target for the hosts beneath ? 
Star in the darkness, ■with'potential sway 
He shone, a sun that changed it into a day ; 

While listening Senates, hearing, held their breath, 

Defeated rivals, rigorous as death, 
Found him the hindrance in ambition's way ; 
Envied his fame and grudged its bright display. 
Such ever is of genius the career, 
The meed of talents faithful in their sphere. 
He who ascends the mountain crest shall find 

Its loftiest peak most wrajJt in cloud and snow ; 
As who surpasses or subdues mankind 

Must look down on the hate of those below; 

Though far above the sun of glory glow, 
As far beneath the earth and ocean spread. 

Round him are icy rocks, and fiercely blow, 
Contending tempests on his naked head ; 

And thus reward the toils and cares that to those summits led. 
Hence who aspires, distinguished, prosperous, high. 
Meets thunder — from the earth, if not the sky. 
Even patriot chiefs must find ungrateful war. 
Or win too late their just — Excelsior. 
So while he lived as glory's first-born son 
And freedom's sire, it raged on Washington. 
AVith fame in just proportion envy grows. 
And he who makes a character makes foes. 
Some in such carnivals alone are seen ; 

262 



» 



miiUL. 




ifeoi-ij ei^lj. 



?f 




Ou others' greatness feasts their envy keen; 
Great only in the ravage of their spleen. 
Yet greatness scorns or quite forgets their rage 
AVhilc worthy purposes its thought engage. 
The alternative, ignoble, craven, mean. 

Obscure as nothing, thwarting glory's plan ; 

No ! do your duty, show yourself a man, 
Nor useless live, il^'ing unblest,'^unseen — 

Your warrant this — I'm an American. 
Thus, come what will, the patriot Christian dares 
To think, speak, act, with wisdom's sacred cares ; 
Serve God, bless men, trust truth, do right, with praises and with prayers. 

[Allered and enlarged from ii L'uown quotation.] 

As to the former, his faults and sins, my argument is 
brief. If angels rejoice over one sirmer that rcpenteth, who 
are jou, cruel caviler, to send your dissonance into their 
harmony, or utter your groans of malignity among their 
pceans and praises to the g7'ace that reigneth, through right- 
eousness to eternal life, by Jesus Christ our Lord ? Let him 
that is icifhout sin among you cast at him the first stone. He 
had sins ? I know it — in part; God knows it altogether; 
knows the same of you and of me ! What if God also 
knows that Henry Clay was a sincere penitent— as he 
solemnly professed to be? Then is he now in heaven, 
among the glorified millions of the ransomed of the Lamb. 
Better employed than caviling, and grudging the persua- 
sion, which so much evidence sustains, that his great heart 
broke with the love of Christ and dissolved in penitence 
at his feet, by the grace of the Holy Ghost; better em- 
ployed, I say, should we all be, in searching and seeking to 
secure our own preparation for glory, before that dread mo- 
ment, when death, at the order of the Son of Man, sweeps us 
away from the vision of the living. Here I wish to forget 
all his faults and all his sins; being a sinner myself, luim- 
1(1}' hoping for forgiveness and acceptance in the Beloved. 




.i.Wiil lWII .. ! 



0bse(]i|ies of 



liUllIiu. 



In all the life and actions of Henry Clay, however far 
his deviations might at times have gone, there appears, 
on just and peculiar occasions, a noble and sincere re- 
morse, that did homage to God and goodness, boldly, in 
the eye and ear of the observant world. All his great 
speeches, and often his brief and incidental ones, more or 
less evince his deep religious convictions, and contain hon- 
est tribute to the inspired and eternal truth of Christi- 
anity. I remember one, and can in the main, or in its 
drift, reproduce it; which affected many at the time, and 
myself with others, about twenty or more years ago, when 
the Asiatic cholera was giving signs of a visit to our coun- 
try, after having coursed its way of desolation round the 
globe; seeming like the angel of wrath, hovering on our 
borders, displayed at meridian altitude in the midst of 
heaven, bending his bow and brandishing his shafts, and 
awaiting the signal from the throne of God, to take his 
fatal aim, and empty his capacious quiver, on places and 
on victims selected for doom. It was in the Senate of the 
United States that he uttered his solemn and appropriate 
eloquence; so apposite to the formidable crisis, when Eu- 
rope was in funereal weeds; so corresponsive to the relig- 
ious awe of our favored and guilty people, before high 
heaven, at a time so proper for solemnity and humiliation, 
that God might see before him a universe in tears, a na- 
tion at his feet, a whole people, with their conscious mil- 
lions, deprecating his terrific and righteous judgments, and 
supplicating, Lord, in wrath remember mercy ! His words 
were good and true. " I am not," said he, " a Christian. 
I ought to be, I wish I was; I hope I shall be, ere long. 
At such an hour, we ought all to be prepared. This pesti- 
lence is the terror of nations and the scourge of God. 

264 



Illllll' 



f.nw^\.«m„-!x.mf....r, , i. ,|„ 



tiIfli EiJimr~. " "" 




"Who can stand before it? It is the cholera asphyxia, 
which with force electric sheds paralysis through the hu- 
man frame, when the muscular and the nervous powers 
obey no more the will, and the mass of the smitten body 
collapses in inexorable death. It goes, sir, where it is 
sent. No prophylactic skill can parry its assault. Sci- 
ence knows not its way, and prognosis attempts in vain to 
forecast the place of its revel or the path of its commis- 
sioned progress. OoD alone can defend our country or 
limit its desolations." 

There is one, a worthy colleague, formerly of the Senate, 
whom I have known and honored increasingly, now for 
more than forty years ; who deserved the confidence of 
Henry Clay, and knew from converse and correspondence 
with him, more of his religious heart probably than any 
other person; and whose sound Christian faith and immac- 
ulate Christian example, were, in my own judgment, blest to 
his arrested and confiding regard; and whose pure and 
sound intelligence, as a judge in these sacred relations, 
there lives no one to question; such a one, whose opinion 
in his favor might well sway and accomplish ours, touching 
his Christian sincerity of faith; whose letters and counsel 
to him, were worthy of the confidential affection with 
which they were always received and answered; and whose 
influence was, I trust, used and owned of God, to render 
him a brother in the kingdom, and a friend to all eternity, 
in the loves and the hopes of the Redeemer. I allude to 
the President of the American Bible Society, and my own 
personal friend. Honorable Theodore Frelinghuysen, 
LL. 1)., late Chancellor of the University of tlie city of 
New York; now President of Rutgers' College, New 
Brunswick, New Jersev. 

265 



i 



;» l m !tM Mil I. 1 B.~lii,J. I 

iiill 



^bsetlnles of 



ilEIiiiiiiUi- 




As to the foes of Clay, I trust there are very few of 
posthumous continuance — very few remaining — few hyenas 
of the genus homo, conscious or confessed, now to dese- 
crate the sleep of the grave ! For one foe he had compar- 
atively twenty friends — I should rather say, five hundred, 
throughout the nation; Whig and Democrat, Slaveholder 
and Abolitionist, Protestant and Romanist, Episcopalian 
and Baptist, Methodist and Presbyterian, Black and White, 
Bond and Free, Indian and Mulatto, Native and Adopted, 
Jew and Quaker, ay ! and all Americans are now the friends 
of Heney Clay, as they are of his great archetype, Wash- 
ington. As to the foes he had, alas ! what great man has 
them not, especially if he acts in public life ? if there he 
has an opinion of his own, and speaks it ? if he takes a po- 
sition, and maintains it ? if he is not in the market to be 
bought or sold, but acts as truth and duty seem to him 
clearly to marshal his way ? There is reason for the ivoe 
pronounced on that piece of imbecility, o/'u'/<07m allmen speak 
well ! Prejudice, ignorance, selfishness, partyism, narrow 
views, wrong-hcadedness, mental wildness, natural ferocity 
of character, superficial thinking, partial conceits, and so- 
cial meanness; these abounding vices of society may account 
for it, that some, nay, many of the greatest and^the best in 
human form, thus far vouchsafed from heaven to earth, 
have been the most hated by many of their cotemporaries 
— who, after death, mingle in the wail of the general be- 
reavement, and build their sepulchres, as if their best 
friends' corpses were resting in them? The man most 
hated in his life, and most murdered in his death, by men 
on earth, was — our blessed Savior, the Lord from heaven 
— the Lord Jesus Christ. 





OBITUARY ADDRESSES 



OCCASION OF THE DEATH 



HON. HENRY CLAY, 



DELIVERED IN THE 



SEXATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESEXTATITES OE THE UNITED STATES, 

JUNE 30, 1852. 





After the reading of the Journal, Mr. Underwood 
rose and addressed the Senate, as follows: 

Mr. President : I rise to announce the death of my 
colleague, Mr. Clay. He died at his lodgings, in the 
National Hotel of this city, at seventeen minutes past 
eleven o'clock yesterday morning, in the seventy-sixth 
year of his age. He expired with perfect composure, and 
without a groan or struggle. 

By his death our country has lost one of its most emi- 
nent citizens and statesmen; and, I think, its greatest 
genius. I shall not detain the Senate by narrating the 
transactions of his long and useful life. His distinguished 
services as a statesman are inseparably connected with the 
history of his country. As Representative and Speaker 
in the other house of Congress, as Senator in this body, 
as Secretary of State, and as Envoy abroad, he has, in all 
these positions, exhibited a wisdom and patriotism which 
have made a deep and. lasting impression upon the grateful 
hearts of his countrymen. His thoughts and his actions 
have already been published to the world in written biog- 
raphy; in congressional debates and. reports; in the jour- 
nals of the two houses; and in the pages of American 
history. They have been commemorated by monuments 
erected on the wayside. They have been engraven on 
medals of gold. Their memory will survive the monu- 
ments of marble and the medals of gold; for these are 



rrrrimiiiH 



05se(|i(ics of 




eflfaced and decay by the friction of ages. But the 
thoughts and actions of my late colleague have become 
identified with the immortality of the human mind, and 
will pass down from generation to generation as a portion 
of our national inheritance, incapable of annihilation so 
long as genius has an admirer, or liberty a friend. 

Mr. President, the character of Henry Clay was formed 
and developed by the influence of our free institutions. His 
physical, mental, and moral faculties were the gift of God. 
That they were greatly superior to the faculties allotted 
to most men cannot be questioned. They were not culti- 
vated, improved, and directed by a liberal or collegiate 
education. His respectable parents were not wealthy, 
and had not the means of maintaining their children at 
college. Moreover, his father died when he was a boy. 
At an early period, Mr. Clay was thrown upon his own 
resources, without patrimony. He grew up in a clerk's 
office in Richmond, Virginia. He there studied law. He 
emigrated from his native state and settled in Lexington, 
Kentucky, where he commenced the practice or his pro- 
fession, before he was of full age. 

The road to wealth, to honor, and fame, was open before 
him. Under our constitution and laws he might freely 
employ his great faculties unobstructed by legal impedi- 
ments, and unaided by exclusive privileges. Very soon 
Mr. Clay made a deep and favorable impression upon the 
people among whom he began his career. The excellence 
of his natural faculties was soon displayed. Necessity 
stimulated him in their cultivation. His assiduity, skill, 
and fidelity in professional engagements secured public 
confidence. He was elected member of the legislature of 
Kentucky, in which body he served several sessions prior 

270 





Tfenl-tjGiAij. 




to 180G. In that year he was elevated to a Hcat in the 
Senate of the United States. 

At the bar and in the General Assembly of Kentucky, 
Mr. Clay first manifested those high qualities as a public 
speaker which have secured to him so much popular ap- 
plause and admiration. His physical and mental organ- 
ization eminently qualified him to become a great and 
impressive orator. His person was tall, -slender and com- 
manding. His temperament ardent, fearless, and full of 
hope. His countenance clear, expressive and variable — 
indicating the emotion which predominated at the moment 
with exact similitude. His voice, cultivated and modu- 
lated in harmony with the sentiment he desired to express, 
fell upon the ear like the melody of enrapturing music. 
His eye beaming with intelligence and flashing with 
coruscations of genius. His gestures and attitudes grace- 
ful and natural. These personal advantages won the 
prepossessions of an audience, even before his intellectual 
powers began to move his hearers; and when his strong 
common sense, his profound reasoning, his clear concep- 
tions of his subject in all its bearings, and his striking and 
beautiful illustrations, united with such personal qualities, 
were brought to the discussion of any question, his audience 
was enraptured, convinced and led by the orator as if en- 
chanted by the lyre of Orpheus. 

No man was ever blessed by his Creator with faculties 
of a higher order of excellence than those given to Mr. 
Clay. In the quickness of his perceptions, and the ra- 
pidity with which his conclusions were formed, he had few 
equals and no superior. He was eminently endowed with 
a nice discriminating taste for order, symmetry and beauty. 
He detected in a moment every thing out of place or deii- 

271 




0bsc()i|ies 



cient in his room, upon his farm, in his own or the dress of 
others. He was a skillful judge of the form and qualities 
of his domestic animals, which he delighted to raise on his 
farm. I could give you instances of the quickness and 
minuteness of his keen faculty of observation which never 
overlooked any thing. A want of neatness and order 
was offensive to him. He was particular and neat in his 
handwriting, and his apparel. A slovenly blot or negli- 
gence of any sort met his condemnation; while he was so 
organized that he attended to, and arranged little things 
to please and gratify his natural love for neatness, order 
and beauty, his great intellectual faculties grasped all the 
subjects of jurisprudence and politics wdth a facility 
amounting almost to intuition. As a lawyer, he stood at 
the head of his profession. As a statesman, his stand at 
the head of the Republican "Whig party for nearly half a 
century, establishes his title to pre-eminence among his 
illustrious associates. 

Mr. Clay was deeply versed in all the springs of human 
action. He had read and studied biography and history. 
Shortly after I left college, I had occasion to call on him 
in Frankfort, where he was attending court, and well I 
remember to have found him with Plutarch's Lives in his 
hands. No one better than he knew how to avail himself 
of human motives, and all the circumstances which sur- 
rounded a subject, or could present them with more force 
and skill to accomplish the object of an argument. 

Mr. Clay, throughout his public career, was influenced 
by the loftiest patriotism. Confident in the truth of his 
convictions and the purity of his purposes, he was ardent, 
sometimes impetuous, in the pursuit of objects which he 

Those who 

272 



believed essential to the general welfare 



,v iteifr() O^ij 



W.Mv 



■'^^.'.'■'////ff, 



Cry?^ 



■■■'■.'., :^i' 



stood in his "way were thiowii aside Avithout fear or cere- 
mony. He never affected a courtier's deference to men or 
opinions which he thought hostile to the best interests of 
his country; and hence he may have wounded the vanity 
of those who thought themselves of consequence. It is 
certain, whatever the cause, that at one period of his life 
Mr. Clay might have been referred to as proof that there 
is more truth than fiction in those profound lines of the 
poet — 

" ITc who ascends to mountain-tops shall find 
The loftiest peaks most wrapt in clouds and snow ; 
lie who surpasses or subdues mankind, 
Must look down on the hate of those below. 
Though high above the sun of glorji glow, 
And far beneath the earth and ocean spread; 
Round him are icy rocks, find loudly blow 
Contending tempests on his naked head, 

And thus reward the toils which to those summits led." 

Calumny and detraction emptied their vials upon him. 
But how glorious the change ! He outlived malice and 
envy. He lived long enough to prove to the world that 
his ambition was no more than a holy aspiration to make 
his country the greatest, most powerful, and best governed 
on the earth. If he desired its highest office, it was be- 
cause the greater power and influence resulting from such 
elevation would enable hiin to do more than he otherwise 
could for the progress and advancement — first of his own 
countrymen, then of his whole race. His sympathies em- 
braced all. The African slave, the Creole of Spanish 
America, the children of renovated classic Greece — all 
families of men, without respect to color or clime, found 
in his expanded bosom and comprehensive intellect a friend 
of their elevation and amelioration. Such ambition as 

IS 273 





Wb?e(]i|ies of 



^^v.^-aa■;»•;. 



that, is God's implantation in the human heart for raising 
the down- trodden nations of the earth, and fitting them for 
regenerated existence in politics, in morals and religion. 

Bold and determined as Mr. Clay was in all his actions 
he was, nevertheless, conciliating. He did not obstinately 
adhere to things impracticable. If he could not accom- 
plish the best, he contented himself with the nighest 
approach to it. He has been the great compromiser of 
those political agitations and opposing opinions which 
have, in the belief of thousands, at different times, endan- 
gered the perpetuity of our Federal Government and 
Union. 

Mr. Clay was no less remarkable for his admirable 
social qualities than for his intellectual abilities. As a 
companion, he was the delight of his friends; and no man 
ever had better or truer. They have loved him from the 
beginning, and loved him to the last. His hospitable 
mansion at Ashland was always open to their reception. 
No guest ever thence departed without feeling happier for 
his visit. But, alas ! that hospitable mansion has already 
been converted into a house of mourning; already has 
intelligence of his death passed with electric velocity to 
that aged, and now widowed lady, who, for more than fifty 
years, bore to him all the endearing relations of wife, and 
whose feeble condition prevented her from joining him in 
this city, and soothing the anguish of life's last scene by 
those endearino- attentions which no one can give so well 
as woman and a wife. May God infuse into her heart 
and mind the Christian spirit of submission under her 
bereavement. It cannot be long before she may expect a 
reunion in Heaven. A nation condoles with her and her 
children on account of their irreparable loss. 

274 




I VlU.Jll.l.l!lil..n»lH^,^^^ 






Mr. Clay, from the nature of his disease, declined very 
gradually. He bore his protracted sufferings with great 
equanimity and patience. On one occasion, he said to me, 
that when death was inevitable, and must soon come, and 
when the sufterer was ready to die, he did not perceive 
the wnsdom of praying to be " delivered from sudden 
death." He thought, under such circumstances, the sooner 
suffering was relieved by death the better. He desired 
the termination of his own sufferings, while he acknowl- 
edged the duty of patiently waiting and abiding the 
pleasure of God. Mr. Clay frequently spoke to me of 
his hope of eternal life, founded upon the merits of Jesus 
Christ as a Savior; who, as he remarked, came into the 
world to bring " life and immortality to light.'*' He was 
a member of the Episcopalian Church. In one of our 
conversations he told me, that as his hour of dissolution 
approached, he found that his affections were concentrat- 
ing more and more upon his domestic cirt-le — his wife and 
children. In my daily visits he was in the habit of asking 
me to detail to him the transactions of the Senate. This 
I did, and he manifested much interest in passing occur- 
rences. His inquiries were less frequent as his end ap- 
proached. For the week preceding his death he seemed 
to be altogether abstracted from the concerns of the world. 
When he became so low that he could not converse with- 
out being fatigued, he frequently requested those around 
him to converse. He w'ould then quietly listen. He 
retained his mental faculties in great perfection. His 
memory remained perfect. He frequently mentioned 
events and conversations of recent occurrence, showing 
that he had a perfect recollection of what was said and 
done. He said to me that he was grateful to God for 






to 






"ll 1 1 '■ '■ 



l9'K^cqines of 

iiTT:iMiiiMn 




continuing to liim the blessing of reason, which enabled 
him to contemplate and reflect on his situation. He man- 
ifested during his confinement the same characteristics 
which marked his conduct through the vigor of his life. 
He was exceedingly averse to give his friends "trouble,'' 
as he called it. Some time before he knew it we com- 
menced waiting through the night in an adjoining room. 
He said to me, after passing a painful day, " Perhaps some 
one had better remain all night in the parlor." From this 
time he knew some friend was constantly at hand ready 
to attend to him. 

Mr. President, the majestic form of Mr. Clay will no 
more grace these halls. No more shall we hear that 
voice which has so often thrilled and charmed the assem- 
bled representatives of the American people. No more 
shall we see that waving hand and eye of light, as when 
he was engaged unfolding his policy in regard to the varied 
interests of our growing and mighty republican empire. 
His voice is silent, on earth, forever. The darkness of 
death has obscured the lustre of his eye. But the memory 
of his services — not only to his beloved Kentucky, not 
only to the United States, but for the cause of human 
freedom and progress throughout the world — will live 
through future ages, as a bright example, stimulating and 
encouraging his own countrymen and the people of all 
nations in their patriotic devotions to country and hu- 
manity. 

With Christians, there is yet a nobler and a higher 
thought in regard to Mr. Clay. They will think of him 
in connection w^ith eternity. They will contemplate his 
immortal spirit occupying its true relative magnitude 
among the moral stars of glory in the presence of God. 

276 





^alil 




itei)i'ij Ciqij 




They will tliink of liim as liavino^ fullillcd the duties 
allotted to him on earth, having been regenerated by 
Divine grace, and having passed through the valley of the 
shadow of death, and reached an everlasting and hapjjy 
home in that "house not made with hands, eternal in the 
heavens." 

On Sunday morning last, I was watching alone at ^Mr. 
Clay's bedside. For the last hour he had been unusually 
quiet, and I thought he was sleeping. In that, however, 
he told me I was mistaken. Opening his eyes and looking 
at me, he said, " Mr. Underwood, there 'may be some 
question where my remains shall be buried. Some per- 
sons may designate Frankfort. I wish to repose at the 
cemetery in Lexington, where many of my friends and 
connections are buried." My reply was, " I will endeavor 
to have your wish executed." 

I now ask the Senate to have his corpse transmitted to 
Lexington, Kentucky, for sepulture. Let him sleep with 
the dead of that city, in and near which his home has 
been for more than half a century. For the people of 
Lexington, the living and the dead, he manifested, by the 
statement made to me, a pure and holy sympathy, and a 
desire to cleave unto them, as strong as that which bound 
Ruth to Naomi. It was his anxious wish to return to 
them before he died, and to realize what the daughter of 
MoAB so strongly felt and beautifully expressed : " Thy 
people shall be my people, and thy God my God. Where 
thou diest will I die, and there will I be buried." 

It is fit that the tomb of Henry Clay should be in the 
city of Lexington. In our Revolution, liberty's first liba- 
tion-blood was poured out in a town of that name in 
Massachusetts. On hearing it, the pioneers of Kentucky 




^. 



MiinkmjP*^ 



C)'3se(ji|Ies of 



consecrated the name, and applied it to the place where 
Mr. Clay desired to be buried. The associations con- 
nected with the name, harmonize with his character; and 
the monument erected to his memory at the spot selected 
by him will be visited by the votaries of genius and liberty 
with that reverence which is inspired at the tomb of 
Washington. Upon that monument let his epitaph be 
engraved. 

Mr. President, I have availed myself of Dr. Johnson's 
paraphrase of the epitaph on Thomas Hanmer, with a few 
alterations and additions, to express, in borrowed verse, 
my admiration for the life and character of Mr. Clay- 
and with this heart-tribute to the memory of my illustrious 
colleague, I conclude my remarks: 

Born -when Freedom her stripes and stars unfurl'd. 
When Revolution shook the startled world- 
Heroes and sages taught his brilliant mind 
To know and love the rights of all mankind. 
" In life's first bloom his public toils began, 
At once commenced the Senator and man; 
In business dexfrous, weighty in debate, 
Near fifty years he labor'd for the State, 
In every speech persuasive wisdom flow'd, 
In every act refulgent virtue glow'd ; 
Suspended faction ceased from rage and strife, 
To hear his eloquence and praise his life. 
Resistless merit fixed the Members' choice, 
Who hail'd him Speaker with united voice." 
His talents ripening with adviincing years — 
His wisdom growing with his public cares — 
A chosen envoy, war's dark horrors cease. 
And tides of carnage turn to streams of peace. 
Conflicting principles, internal strife, 
Tarilf and slavei'y, disunion rife. 
All are compromised by his great hand. 
And beams of joy illuminate the land. 
Patriot, Christian, Husband, Father, Friend, 
Thy work of life achieved a glorious end ! 

278 




It 



ijiii'(| Clqi). 




I ofifer the following resolutions: 

Resolved, That a committee of six be appointed by the 
President of the Senate, to take order for superintending 
the funeral of Henry Clay, late a member of this body, 
which will take place to-morrow at twelve o'clock, m., and 
that the Senate will attend the same. 

Resolved, That the members of the Senate, from a sin- 
cere desire of showing every mark of respect to the 
memory of the deceased, will go into mourning for one 
month, by the usual mode of wearing crape on the left 
arm. 

Resolved, As a further mark of respect entertained 
by the Senate for the memory of Henry Clay, and his 
long and distinguished services to his country, that his 
remains, in pursuance of the known wishes of his family, 
be removed to the place of sepulture selected by himself 
at Lexington, in Kentucky, in charge of the Sergeant-at- 
Arms, and attended by a committee of six senators, to be 
appointed by the President of the Senate, who shall have 
full power to carry this resolution into effect. 




Mr. Cass. 

Mr. President: Again has an impressive warning come 
to teach us, that in the midst of life we are in death. The 
ordinary labors of this hall are suspended, and its con- 
tentions hushed, before the power of him, who says to the 
m of human passion, as he said of old to the waves of 
ilee. Peace, be still. The lessons of His providence, 
ere as they may be, often become merciful dispensa- 
ons, like that which is now spreading sorrow through 
land, and which is reminding us that we have higher 

279 



^ 

k 

1!^ 

m 



(9')?;c(]ilii? of 



rmmFniLiL 



duties to fulfill, and graver responsibilities to encounter, 
than those that meet us here, when we lay our hands upon 
His holy word, and invoke His holy name, promising to be 
faithful to that Constitution, which He gave us in His 
mercy, and will withdraw only in the hour of our blind- 
ness and disobedience, and of His own wrath. 

Another great man has fallen in our land, ripe indeed 
in years and in honors, but never dearer to the American 
peojde than when called from the theatre of his services 
and renown to that final bar where the lofty and the lowly 
must all meet at last. 

I do not rise, upon this mournful occasion, to indulge in 
the language of panegyric. My regard for the memory 
of the dead, and for the obligations of the living, would 
equally rebuke such a course. The severity of truth is, 
at once, our proper duty and our best consolation. Born 
durino- the revolutionarv struggle, our deceased associate 
was one of the few remaining public men who connect the 
present generation with the actors in the trying scenes of 
that eventful period, and whose names and deeds will soon 
be known only in the history of their country. He was 
another illustration, and a noble one, too, of the glorious 
equality of our institutions, which freely offer all their 
rewards to all who justly seek them; for he was the archi- 
tect of his own fortune, having made his way in life by 
self exertion; and he was an early adventurer in the great 
forest of the West, then a world of primitive vegetation, 
but now the abode of intelligence and religion, of pros- 
perity and civilization. But he possessed that intellectual 
superiority which overcomes surrounding obstacles, and 
which local seclusion cannot long withhold from general 
knowledge and appreciation. 




]!c:^r(| Cinl}. 



M.l'll!lli, 



?S*i^' 



It is almost half a century since lie passed tlnoiiuh 
Chillicotlie, then tlie seat of government of Ohio, Mherc I 
was a member of the legislature, on his way to take his 
place in this very body, which is now listening to this 
reminiscence, and to a feeble tribute of regard from one 
who then saw him for the first time, but who can never 
forget the impression he produced by the charms of his 
conversation, the frankness of his manner, and the high 
qualities with which he was endowed. Since then he has 
belonged to his country, and has taken a part, and a prom- 
inent part, both in peace and war, in all the great ques- 
tions afiecting her interest and her honor; and though it 
has been my fortune often to differ from him, yet I believe 
he was as pure a patriot as ever participated in the coun- 
cils of a nation, anxious for the public good, and seekino- 
to promote it, during all the vicissitudes of a long and 
eventful life. That he exercised a powerful influence, 
within the sphere of his action, through the whole country, 
indeed, we all feel and know; and we know, too, the emi- 
nent endowments to which he owed this high distinction. 
Frank and fearless in the expression of his opinion, and 
in the performance of his duties, with rare powers of 
eloquence, which never failed to rivet the attention of his 
auditory, and which always commanded admiration, even 
when they did not carry conviction — prompt in decision, 
and firm in action, and with a vigorous intellect, trained 
in the contests of a stirring life, and strengthened by en- 
larged experience and observation, joined withal to an 
ardent love of country, and to great purity of purpose, — 
these were the elements of his power and success; and we 
dwell npon them with mournful gratification now, when 
we shall soon follow him to the cold and silent tomb. 



ai 

f'''!l'l'lliiii.. 



(i)bsc()i|ies of 




^yhere we shall commit " earth to earth, ashes to ashes, 
dust to dust," but with the blessed conviction of the truth 
of that Divine revelation which teaches us that there is 
life and hope beyond the narrow house, where we shall 
leave him alone to the mercy of his God and ours. 

He has passed beyond the reach of human praise or 
censure; but the judgment of his contemporaries has pre- 
ceded and pronounced the judgment of history, and his 
name and fame will shed lustre upon his country, and will 
be proudly cherished in the hearts of his countrymen for 
long ages to come. Yes, they will be cherished and freshly 
remembered, when these marble columns, that surround 
us, so often the witnesses of his triumph — but in a few 
brief hours, when his mortal frame, despoiled of the im- 
mortal spirit, shall rest under this dome for the last time, 
to become the witnesses of his defeat in that final contest, 
where the mightiest fall before the great destroyer — when 
these marble columns shall themselves have fallen, like all 
the works of man, leaving their broken fragments to tell 
the story of former magnificence, amid the very ruins 
which announce decay and desolation. 

I was often with him during his last illness, when the 
world and the things of the world were fast fading away, 
before him. He knew that the silver cord was almost 
loosened, and that the golden bowl was breaking at the 
fountain; but he was resigned to the will of Providence, 
feeling that He who gave has the right to take away, in 
His own good time and manner. After his duty to his 

eator, and his anxiety for his family, his first care was 

• his country, and his first wish for the preservation and 

perpetuation of the Constitution and the Union — dear to 

im in the hour of death, as they had ever been in the 

282 



HTOHBHEEHS 



M^l^'' 



iteofy Gl^y. 



Bnt^^^ 



Vigor 



of life. Of that Constitution and Union, -whose 
defence in the last and greatest crisis of their peril, had 
called forth all his energies, and stimulated those memora- 
ble and powerful exertions, Avhich he who witnessed can 
never forget, and which no doubt hastened the final catas- 
trophe a nation now deplores, with a sincerity and una- 
nimity, not less honorable to themselves than to the 
memory of the object of their afTections. And when we 
shall enter that narrow valley, through which he has 
passed before us, and which leads to the judgment-seat of 
God, may we be able to say, through faith in his Son our 
Savior, and in the beautiful language of the hymn of 
the dying Christian — dying, but ever living and trium- 
phant — 

" The world recedes ; it disappears ! 
Ileav'n opens on my eyes ! my ears 

With sounds seraphic ring ; 
Lend, lend your wings ! I mount — I fly ! 
Oh, Grave ! where is thy victory ? 

Oh, Death ! where is thy sting? " 

" Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last 
hour be like his." 



Mr. Hunter : 

Mr. President: We have heard, with deep sensibility, 
what has just fallen from the Senators who have preceded 
me. We have heard, sir, the voice of Kentucky — and, 
upon this occasion, she had a right to speak — in mingled 
accents of pride and sorrow; for it has rarely fallen to the 
lot of any state to lament the loss of such a son. But 
A^irginia, too, is entitled to her place in this procession; 
for she cannot be supposed to be unmindful of he tie 

2S3 




'ir.iMiiMUi 



which bound her to the dead. When ^the earth opens to 
receive the mortal part which she gave to man, it is then 
that affection is eager to bury in its bosom every recol- 
lection but those of love and kindness. And, sir, when 
the last sensible tie is about to be severed, it is then that 
we look with anxious interest to the deeds of the life, and 
to the emanations of the heart and the mind, for those 
more enduring monuments which are the creations of an 
immortal nature. 

In this instance, we can be at no loss for these. This 
land, sir, is full of the monuments of his genius. His 
memory is as imperishable as American history itself, for 
he was one of those who made it. Sir, he belonged to 
that marked class who are the men of their century; for it 
was his rare good fortune not only to have been endowed 
with the capacity to do great things, but to have enjoyed 
the opportunities of achieving them. I know, sir, it has 
been said and deplored, that he wanted some of the advan- 
tages of an early education; but it, perhaps, has not been 
remembered that, in many respects, he enjoyed such oppor- 
tunities for mental training as can rarely fall to the lot of 
man. He had not a chance to learn as much from books, 
1)ut he had such opportunities of learning from men as few 
have ever enjoyed. Sir, it is to be remembered that he 
was reared at a time when there was a state of society, in 
the commonwealth which gave him birth, such as has never 
been seen there before nor since. It was his early privi- 
lege to see how justice was administered by a Pendleton 
and a Wythe, with the last of whom he was in the daily 
habit of familiar intercourse. He had constant opportu- 
nities to observe how forensic questions were managed by 
a Maeshall and a Wickham. He was old enough, too, 

2:1 




n,j«„wnr..i™wT 



'' itei]i-t| fc)ini| 



iHiiWi; 





to have heard and to have appreciated the eloquence of a 
Patrick Henry, and of George Keith Taylor. In 
short, sir, he lived in a society in which the examples of 
a Jefferson, and a Madison, and Monroe were living 
influences, and on which the setting sun of a Washington 
cast the mild effulgence of its departing rays. 

He was trained, too, as has been well said by the Sena- 
tor from Michigan, [Mr. Cass,] at a period when the 
recent revolutionary struggle had given a more elevated 
tone to patriotism, and imparted a higher cast to public 
feeling and to public character. Such lessons were worth, 
perhaps, more to him than the Avhole encyclopedia of scho- 
lastic learning. Not only were the circumstances of his 
early training favorable to the development of his genius, 
but the theatre upon which he was thrown, was eminently 
propitious for its exercise. The circumstances of the 
early settlement of Kentucky, the generous, daring and 
reckless character of the people — all htted it to be the 
theatre for the display of those commanding qualities of 
heart and mind, which he so eminently possessed. There 
can be little doubt but that those people and their chosen 
leader exercised a mutual influence upon each other; and 
no one can be surprised that with his brave spirit and 
commanding eloquence, and fascinating address, he should 
have led not only there but elsewhere. 

I did not know him, Mr. President, as you did, in the 
freshness of his prime, or in the full maturity of his man- 
hood. I did not hear him, sir, as you have heard him, 
when his voice roused the spirit of his countrymen for 
war — when he cheered the drooping, when he rallied the 
doubting through all the vicissitudes of a long and doubt- 
ful contest. I have never seen him, sir, when, from the 

2&0 




M 



.'■ Ob^c(]iiies of 



rTTinniiniii 



height of the chair, he ruled the House of Representatives 
by the energy of his will, or when, upon the level of the 
floor, he exercised a control almost hs absolute by the 
mastery of his intellect. When I first knew him his sun 
had a little passed its zenith. The effacing hand of time 
had just begun to touch the lineaments of his manhood. 
But yet, sir, I saw enough of him to be able to realize 
what he might have been in the prime of his strength, and 
in the full vigor of his maturity. I saw him, sir, as you 
did, when he led the " opposition" during the administra- 
tion of Mr. Van Buren. I had daily opportunities of 
witnessing the exhibition of his powers during the extra 
session under Mr. Tyler's administration. And I saw, 
as we all saw, in a recent contest, the exhibition of power 
on his part, which was most marvellous in one of his years. 
Mr. President, he may not have had as much of analytic 
skill as some others, in dissecting a subject. It may be, 
perhaps, that he did not seek to look quite so far ahead as 
some who have been most distinguished for political fore- 
cast. But it may be truly said of Mr. Clay, that he was 
no exaggerator. He looked at events through neither end 
of the telescope, but surveyed them with the natural and 
the naked eye. He had the capacity of seeing things as 
the people saw them, and of feeling things as the people 
felt them. He had, sir, beyond any other man, whom I 
have ever seen, the true mesmeric touch of the orator — the 
rare art of transferring his impulses to others. Thoughts, 
feelings, emotions, came from the ready mould of his 
genius, radiant and glowing, and communicated their own 
warmth to every heart which received them. His, too 
was the power of wielding the higher and intenser forms 
of passion with a majesty and an i-ase, which none but the 

286 







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great masters of the human heart can ever employ. It 
was his rare good fortune to have been one of those who 
form, as it were, a sensible link, a living tradition which 
connects one age with another, and through which one 
generation speaks its thoughts and feelings, and appeals 
to another. And, unfortunate is it for a countrv, when it 
ceases to possess such men, for it is to them that we chielly 
owe the capacity to maintain the unity of the great Epos 
of human history, and preserve the consistency of political 
action. 

Sir, it may be said that the grave is still new-made 
which covers the mortal remains of one of those great 
men who have been taken from our midst, and the earth is 
soon to open to receive another. I know not whether it 
can be said to be a matter of lamentation, so far as the 
dead are concerned, that the thread of this life has been 
clipped when once it had been fully spun. They escape 
the infirmities of age, and they leave an imperishable name 
behind them. The loss, sir, is not theirs, but ours; and a 
loss the more to be lamented that we see none to fill the 
places thus made vacant on the stage of public affairs. 
But it may be well for us, who have much more cause to 
mourn and to lament such deaths, to pause amidst the 
business of life for the purpose of contemplating the spec- 
tacle before us, and of drawing the moral from the passing 
event. It is when death seizes for its victims those who 
are, by " a head and shoulders, taller than all the rest," 
that we feel most deeply the uncertainty of human affairs, 
and that "the glories of our mortal state are shadows, not 
substantial things." It is, sir, in such instances as the 
present that we can best study by the light of example the 
true objects of life, and the w^isest ends of human pursuit. 




v^>')sec]i(ies of 



Mr. Hale. 

Mr. President : I hope I shall not be considered obtru- 
sive, if on this occasion, for a brief moment, I mingle my 
humble voice with those that, with an ability that I shall 
neither attempt nor hope to equal, have sought to do jus- 
tice to the worth and memory of the deceased, and at the 
same time appropriately to minister to the sympathies and 
sorrows of a stricken people. Sir, it is the teaching of 
inspiration that " no man liveth and no man dieth unto 
himself." 

There is a lesson taught no less in the death than in the 
life of every man — eminently so in the case of one who has 
filled a large space and occupied a distinguished position 
in the thoughts and regard of his fellow-men. Particularly 
instructive at this time is the event which we now deplore, 
although the circumstances attending his decease are such 
as are calculated to assuage rather than aggravate the 
grief which it must necessarily cause. His time had-fully 
come. The threescore and ten, marking the ordinary 
period of human life, liad for some years been passed, and, 
full of years and of honors, he has gone to his rest. And 
now, when the nation is marshaling itself for the contest 
which is to decide " who shall be greatest," as if to chasten 
our ambition, to restrain and subdue the violence of pas- 
sion, to moderate our desires and elevate our hopes, we 
have the spectacle of one who, by the force of his intellect 
and the energy of his own purpose, had achieved a repu- 
tation which the highest official honors of the Republic 
might have illustrated, but could not have enhanced, laid 
low in death — as if, at the very outset of this political 
contest, on which the nation is now entering, to teach the 




m 






ambitious and aspiring the vanity of human pursuit and 
end of carthl}' honor. But, sir, I do not intend to dwell 
on that moral which is taught by the silent lips and clof-ed 
eye of the illustrious dead, with a force su-ch as no man 
ever spoke with; but I shall leave the event with its silent 
and mute eloquence, to impress its own appropriate teach- 
ings on the heart. 

In the long and eventful life of ;Mr. Clay, in the various 
positions which he occupied, in the many posts of public 
duty which he filled, in the many exhibitions wdiich his 
history affords of untiring energy; of unsurpassed elo- 
quence, and of devoted patriotism, it would be strange 
indeed if different minds, as they dwell upon the subject, 
were all to select the same incidents of his life as pre-emi- 
nently calculated to challenge admiration and respect. 

Sir, my admiration — aye, my affection for Mr. Clay — 
was won and secured many years since, even in my school- 
l)oy days — when his voice of counsel, encouragement and 
sympathy was heard in the other hall of this capitol, in 
behalf of the struggling colonies of the southern portion 
of this continent, who, in the pursuit of their inalienable 
rights, in imitation of our own forefathers, had unfurled 
the banner of liberty, and, regardless of consequences, had 
gallantly rushed into that contest where " life is lost or 
freedom w^ou." And again, sir, when Greece, rich in the 
memories of the past, awoke from the slumber of ages of 
oppression and centuries of shame, and resolved 

" To call her virtues back, and coiKiuer time and fate" — 

there, over the plains of that classic land, above the din of 
battle and the clash of arms, mingling with the shouts of 
the victors and the groans of the vanquished, were heard 



19 



289 



i»iB ,.i i i<,ih i Biy <i ?aiiiB 



(9b8e()i|ies of 



ililllllll'lln, 



the thrilling and stirring notes of that same eloquence, 
excited by a sympathy which knew no bounds, wide as the 
world, pleading the cause of Grecian liberty before the 
American Congress, as if to pay back to Greece the debt 
which every patriot and orator felt was her due. Sir, in 
the long and honorable career of the deceased, there are 
many events and circumstances upon which his friends 
and posterity will dwell with satisfaction and pride, but 
none which will preserve his memory with more unfading 
lustre to future ages, than the course he pursued in the 
Spanish- American and Greek revolutions. 



Mr. Clemens. 

Mr. President: I should not have thought it necessary 
to add any thing to what has already been said, but for a 
request preferred by some of the friends of the deceased. 
I should have been content to mourn him in silence, and 
left it to other tongues to pronounce his eulogy. What I 
have now to say shall be brief — very brief. 

Mr. President, it is now less than three short years ago 
since I first entered this body. At that period it num- 
bered among its members many of the most illustrious 
statesmen this Republic has ever produced, or the world 
has ever known. Of the living, it is not my purpose to 
speak; but, in that brief period, death has been busy here; 
and as if to mark the feebleness of human things, his 
arrows have been aimed at the highest, the mightiest of us 
all. First, died Calhoun. And well, sir, do I remember 
the deep feeling evinced on that occasion by him whose 
death has been announced here to-day, when he said: "I 
was his senior in years — in nothing else. In the course of 

290 




ttei)i\t| Cinj). 




nature I oug-lit to liavc preceded him. It has been decreed 
otherwise; but I know that I shall linger here only a short 
time, apa shall soon follow him." It was genius mourning 
ovpr'^Js younger brother, and too surely predicting his own 
approaching end. 

He, too, is now gone from among us, and left none like 
him behind. That Yoice, whose every tone was music, is 
hushed and still. That clear, bright eye is dim and lustre- 
less, and that breast, where grew and flourished every 
quality which could adorn and dignify our nature, is cold 
as the clod that soon must cover it. A few hours have 
wrought a mighty change — a change for which a lingering 
illness had, indeed, in some degree, prepared us; but which, 
nevertheless, will still fall upon the nation with crushing 
force. Many a sorrowing heart is now asking, as I did 
yesterday, when I heard the first sound of the funeral 
bell— 

" And is he gone ?— the pure of the purest, 
The hand that upheld our bright banner the surest. 

Is he gone from our struggles away ? 
But yesterday lending a people new life, 
Cold, mute, in the coffin to-day." 

Mr. President, this is an occasion when eulogy m«gt fail 
to perform its office. The long life which is now ended is 
a history of glorious deeds too mighty for the tongue of 
praise. It is in the hearts of his countrymen that his best 
epitaph must be written. It is in the admiration of a 
world that his renown must be recorded. In that deep 
love of country which distinguished every period of his 
life, he may not have been unrivaled. In loftiness of 
intellect he was not without his peers. The skill with 
which he touched every chord of the human heart may 

2yi 





0!)3e(^ilies of 



iTfTiTmiiui, 



have been equaled. The iron will, the unbending firm- 
ness, the fearless courage, which marked his character, 
may have been shared by others. But where shall we go 
to find all these qualities united, concentrated, blended 
into one brilliant whole, and shedding a lustre upon one 
single head, which does not dazzle the beholder only be- 
cause it attracts his love and demands his worship ? 

I scarcely know, sir, how far it may be allowable, upon 
an occasion like this, to refer to party struggles which 
have left wounds not yet entirely healed. I will venture, 
however, to suggest, that it should be a source of consola- 
tion to his friends that he lived long enough to see the full 
accomplishinent of the last great work of his life, and to 
witiU'ss the total disappearance of that sectional tempest 
which ihreuteued to whelm the Republic in ruins. Both 
the gnat p;irti('S of the country have agreed to stand 
upon Lhc platform which he erected; and both of them 
have solemnly pledged themselves to maintain unimpaired 
the work of his hands. I doubt not the knowledge of this 
cheered him in his dying moments, and helped to steal 
away the pangs of dissolution. 

Mr. President, if I knew any thing more that I could 
say, I would gladly utter it. To me he was something 
more than kind, and I am called upon to mingle a private 
with the public grief. I wish that I could do something 
to add to his fame. But he built for himself a monument 
of immortality, and left to his friends no task but that of 
soothing their own sorrow for his loss. We pay to him 
the tribute of our tears. More we have no power to 
bestow. Patriotism, honor, genius, courage, have all come 
to strew their garlands about his tomb; and well they 
may, for he was the peer of them all. 

292 




t_cnl\(| Ciqlj. 




Mr. President: It is not always by words that the 
living pay to the dead the sinccrest and most eloquent 
trilmte. The tears of a nation, flowing spontaneously 
over the grave of a i)ublic benefactor, is a more eloquent 
testimonial of his worth, and of the aflfection and venera- 
tion of his countrymen, than the most highly-wrought eu- 
logium of the most gifted tongue. The heart is not neces- 
sarily the fountain of words, but it is always the source 
of tears, whether of joy, gratitude or grief. But sincere, 
truthful and eloipient, as they are, they leave no perma- 
nent record of the virtues and greatness of him on whose 
tomb they are shed. As the dews of heaven falling at 
night are absorbed by the earth or dried up by the morn- 
ing sun, so the tears of a people, shed for their benefactor, 
disappear without leaving a trace to tell to future genera- 
tions of the services, sacrifices, and virtues of him to 
whose memory they were a grateful tribute. But as 
homage paid to virtue is an incentive to it, it is right that 
the memory of the good, the great, and noble of the earth 
should be preserved and honored. 

The ambition, Mr. President, of the truly great, is more 
the hope of living in the memory and estimation of future 
ages than of possessing power in their own. It is this 
hope that stimulates them to perseverance; that enables 
them to encounter disappointment, ingratitude and neg- 
lect, and to press on through toils, privations and perils 
to the end. It was not the hope of discovering a world, 
over which he should himself exercise dominion, that sus- 
tained Columbus in all his trials. It was not for this he 
braved danger, disappointment, poverty and reproach. It 



K 
B 




05i5cqi|ies of 



aSumu^ 






was not for this he subdued his native pride, wandered 
from kingdom to kingdom, kneeling at the feet of princes, 
a suppliant for means to prosecute his sublime enterprise. 
It was not for this, after having at last secured the patron- 
age of Isabella, that he put off in his crazy and ill-ap- 
pointed fleet into unknown seas, to struggle with storms 
and tempests, and the rage of a mutinous crew. It was 
another and nobler kind of ambition that stimulated him 
to contend with terror, superstition and despair, and to 
press forward on his perilous course, when the needle in 
his compass, losing its polarity, seemed to unite with the 
fury of the elements and the insubordination of his crew 
in turning him back from his perilous but glorious under- 
taking. It was the hope which was realized at last, when 
his ungrateful country was compelled to inscribe, as an 
epitaph on his tomb — 

" (Toluinlius {)as gibcn n nrln toorlti to tfjt fei'iigtoms of CTnstilc ants Ufon," 

that enabled him, at first, to brave so many disappoint- 
ments, and at last, to conquer the multitude of perils that 
beset his pathway on the deep. This, sir, is the ambition 
of the truly great — not to achieve present fame, but future 
immortality. This being thp case, it is befitting here to- 
day, to add to the life of Henry Clay the record of his 
death, signalized as it is by a nation's gratitude and grief. 
It is right that posterity should learn from us, the contem- 
poraries of the illustrious deceased, that his virtues and 
services were appreciated by his country, and acknowl- 
edged by the tears of his countrymen poured out upon 
his grave. 

The career of Henry Clay was a wonderful one. And 
what an illustration of the excellence of our institutions 
would a retrospect of his life afford ! Born in an humble 

294 



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lUmiUt. 



±ssa 



station, without any of the adventitious aids of fortune by 
Avhich the obstructions on the road to fame are smoothed, 
he rose, not only to the most exalted eminence of position, 
but likewise to the highest place in the affections of his 
countrymen. Taking into view the disadvantages of his 
early position, disadvantages against which he had always 
to contend, his career is without a parallel in the history 
of great men. To have seen him a youth, without friends 
or fortune, and with but a scanty education, who would 
have ventured to predict for him a course so brilliant and 
beneficent, and a fame so well deserved and endurino- "> 
Like the pine, which sometimes springs up amidst the 
rocks on the mountain side, with scarce a crevice in which 
to fix its roots, or soil to nourish them, but which, never- 
theless, overtops all the trees of the surrounding forest, 
Henry Clay, by his own inherent, self-sustaining energy 
and genius, rose to an altitude of fame almost unequaled 
in the age in which he lived. As an orator, legislator and 
statesman, he had no superior. All his faculties were 
remarkable, and in remarkable combination. Possessed 
of a brilliant genius and fertile imagination, his judo-ment 
was sound, discriminating and eminently practical. Of 
an ardent and impetuous temperament, he was nevertheless 
persevering and firm of purpose. Frank, bold and intrep- 
id, he was cautious in providing against the contingencies 
and obstacles which might possibly rise up in the road to 
success. Generous, liberal, and entertaining broad and 
expanded views of national policy, in his legislative course 
he never transcended the limits of a wise economy. 

But, Mr. President, of all his faculties, that of niakino- 
friends and attaching them to him was the most remarka- 
ble and extraordinary. In this respect, he seemed to pos- 

295 



1 



sess a sort of fascination, by which all who came into his 
presence were attracted toward, and bound to him by 
ties which neither time nor circumstances had power to 
dissolve or weaken. In the admiration of his friends was 
the recognition of the divinity of intellect; in their 
attachment to him a confession of his generous personal 
qualities and social virtues. 

Of the public services of Mr. Clay, the present occasion 
affords no room for a sketch more extended than that 
which his respected colleague [Mr. Underwood] has pre- 
sented. It is, however, sufficient to say, that for more 
than forty years he has been a prominent actor in the 
drama of American aifairs. During the late war with 
England, his voice was more potent than any other in 
awakening the spirit of the country, infusing confidence 
into the people, and rendering available the resources for 
carrying on the contest. In our domestic controversies 
threatening the peace of the country and the integrity of 
the Union, he has always been first to note danger as well 
as to suggest the means of averting it. When the waters 
of the great political deep were upheaved by the tempest 
of discord, and the ark of the Union, freighted with the 
hopes and destinies of freedom, tossing about on the 
raging billows, and drifting every moment nearer to the 
vortex which threatened to swallow it up, it was his clarion 
voice, rising above the storm, that admonished the crew of 
impending peril, and counseled the way to safety. 

But, Mr. President, devotedly as he loved his country, 
his aspirations were not limited to its welfare alone. 
Wherever freedom had a votary, that votary had a friend 
in Henry Clay; and in the struggle of the Spanish colo- 
nies for independence he uttered words of encouragement 



•'9fi 



'I'iMiiliiii 



[iTninnj 



iWiM'l) t))i|(). 



iiiibi.,. 



which liavc become the mottoes on the banners of freedom 
ill every land. But neither the services which he has 
rendered his own country, nor his wishes for the welfare 
of others, nor his genius, nor the afTectiou of friends, 
could turn aside the destroyer. No price could purchase 
exemption from the common lot of humanity. Henry 
Clay, the wise, the great, the gifted, had to die; and his 
history is summed up in the biography which the Russian 
poet has prepared for all, kings and serfs: 

* * * * "born, living, dying, 
Quitting the still shore for the troubled wave, 
Struggling with storm-clouds, over shipwrecks flying, 
And casting anchor in the silent grave." 

But though time would not spare him, there is still this 
of consolation : he died peacefully and happy, ripe in re- 
nown, full of years and of honors, and rich in the affections 
of his country. He had, too, the unspeakable satisfaction 
of closing his eyes whilst the country he had loved so much 
and served so well, was still in the enjoyment of peace, 
happiness, union and prosperity — still advancing in all the 
elements of wealth, greatness and power. 

I know, Mr. President, how unequal I have been to the 
apparently self-imposed task of presenting, in an appro- 
priate manner, the merits of the illustrious deceased. But 
if I had remained silent on an occasion like this, when the 
hearts of my constituents are swelling with grief, I would 
have been disowned by them. It is for this reason — that 
of giving utterance to their feelings as well as of my 
own — that I have trespassed on the time of the Senate. 
I would that I could have spoken fitter words; but, such 
as they are, they were uttered by the tongue in response 
to the promptings of the heart. 

297 




<c"iSt't|(|icS of 




Mr. Sewaed. 

Mr. President: Fifty years ago, Henry Clay, of Vir- 
ginia, already adopted by Kentucky, then as youthful as 
himself, entered the service of his country, a representa- 
tive in the unpretending legislature of that rising state; 
and having thenceforward, with ardor and constancy, 
pursued the gradual paths of an aspiring change through 
halls of Congress, Foreign courts and Executive councils, 
he has now, with the cheerfulness of a patriot, and the 
serenity of a Christian, fitly closed his long and arduous 
career, here in the Senate, in the full presence of the Re- 
public, looking down upon the scene with anxiety and 
alarm, not merely a Senator like one of us who yet remain 
in the Senate house, but filling that character which, 
though it had no authority of law, and was assigned 
without suffrage, Augustus Caesar nevertheless declared 
was above the title of Emperor, Primus inter Illustres — 
the Prince of the Senate. 

Generals are tried, Mr. President, by examining the 
campaigns they have lost or won, and statesmen by re- 
viewing the transactions in which they have been engaged. 
Hamilton would have been unknown to us, had there been 
no Constitution to be created; as Brutus would have died 
in obscurity, had there been no C^sar to be slain. 

Colonization, Revolution, and Organization — three great 
acts in the drama of our national progress — had already 
passed when the western patriot appeared on the public 
stage. He entered in that next division of the majestic 
scenes which was marked by an inevitable reaction of 
political forces, a wild strife of factions and ruinous em- 
barrassments in our foreign relations. This transition 
stage is always more perilous than any other in the career 






of nations, and especially in the career of republics. It 
proved fatal to the Commonwealth in England. Scarcely 
any of the Spanish-American states have yet emerged 
from it; and more than once it has been sadly signalized 
by the ruin of the republican cause in France. 

The continuous administration of Washingt<^n and 
John Adams had closed under a cloud which had thrown 
a broad, dark shadow over the future; the nation was 
deeply indebted at home and abroad, and its credit was 
prostrate. The revolutionary factions had given place to 
two inveterate parties, divided by a gulf which had been 
worn by the conflict in which the Constitution was adopted, 
and made broader and deeper by a war of prejudices con- 
cerning the merits of the belligerents in the great Euro- 
pean struggle that then convulsed the civilized world. 
Our extraordinary political system was little more than 
an ingenious theory, not yet practically established. The 
union of the states was as yet only one of compact; for 
the political, social and commercial necessities to which it 
was so marvellously adapted, and which, clustering thickly 
upon it, now render it indissoluble, had not then been 
broadly disclosed, nor had the habits of acquiescence and 
the sentiments of loyalty, always slow of growth, fully 
ripened. The bark that had gone to sea, thus unfurnished 
and untried, seemed quite certain to founder by reason of 
its own inherent frailty, even if it should escape unharmed 
in the great conflict of nations which acknowledged no 
claims of justice and tolerated no pretensions of neutrali- 
ty. Moreover, the territory possessed by the nation was 
inadequate to commercial exigencies and indispensable 
social expansion; and yet no provision had been made for 
enlargement, nor for extending the political system over 

299 



rP 



f^f^^r^^ ""^"^^^ 


IF 


05s 


e(]i|iijs 


of"'li 




distant regions, inhabited or otherwise, which must inev- 
itably be acquired. Nor could any such acquisition be 
made, without disturbing the carefully-adjusted balance of 
powers among the members of the confederacy. 

These difficulties, Mr. President, although they grew 
less with time and by slow degrees, continued throughout 
the whole life of the statesman whose obsequies we are 
celebrating. Be it known, then, and I am sure that his- 
tory will confirm the instruction, that Conservatism was 
the interest of the nation, and the responsibility of its 
rulers, during the period in which he flourished. He was 
ardent, bold, generous, and even ambitious; and yet, with 
a profound conviction of the true exigencies of the coun- 
try, like Alexander Hamilton, he disciplined himself 
and trained a restless nation, that knew only self-control, 
to the rigorous practice of that often humiliating conserv- 
atism which its welfare and security in that particular 
crisis so imperiously demanded. 

It could not happen, sir, to any citizen to have acted 
alone, nor even to have acted always the most conspicuous 
part in a trying period so long protracted. Henry Clay, 
therefore, shared the responsibilities of government, with 
not only his proper contemporaries, but also survivors of 
the Revolution, as well as also many who will succeed 
himself. Delicacy forbids the naming of those who retain 
their places here, but we may, without impropriety, recall 
among his compeers a Senator of vast resources and inflex- 
ible resolve, who has recently withdrawn from this cham- 
ber, but I trust not altogether from public life, (Mr. Ben- 
ton;) and another, who, surpassing all his contx mporaries 
within his country, and even throughout the world, in 
proper eloquence of the forum, now in autumnal years. 



300 



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iieoi'ljCl^y. 




for a second time dignifies and adorns the liiglicst seat in 
the Executive Council, (Mr. Webster.) Passing by these 
eminent and noble men, the shades of Calhoun, John 
QuiNCY Adams, Jackson, Monroe and Jefferson rise up 
before us — statesmen whose living and local fame has 
ripened already into historical and world wide renown. 

Among geniuses so lofty as these, Henry Clay bore a 
part in regulating the constitutional freedom of political 
debate; establishing that long-contested and most import- 
ant line which divides the sovereignty of the several 
states from that of the states confederated ; asserting the 
right of neutrality, and vindicating it by a war against 
Great Britain, when that just but extreme measure became 
necessary; adjusting the terms on which that perilous yet 
honorable contest was brought to a peaceful close; per- 
fecting the army and the navy, and the national fortifica- 
tions; settling the fiscal and financial policy of the gov- 
ernment in more than one crisis of apparently threatened 
revolution; asserting and calling into exercise the powers 
of the government for making and improving internal 
communications between the states; arousing and encour- 
aging the Spanish- American colonies on this continent to 
throw oif the foreign yoke, and to organize governments 
on principles congenial to our own, and thus creating ex- 
ternal bulwarks for our own national defence; establishing 
equal and impartial peace and amity with all existing 
maritime powers; and extending the constitutional organ- 
ization of government over all the vast regions secured in 
his lifetime by purchase or by conquest, whereby the pillars 
of the republic have been removed from the banks of the 
St. Mary, to the borders of the Rio Grande, and Ironi the 
margin of the Mississippi to the Pacific coast. V\e may 

301 



.' (i)bsi'(]i|ics 0- 



rniiMuiiiM., 



miHik 




not yet discuss here the wisdom of the several measures 
which have thus passed in review before us, nor of the 
positions which the deceased statesman assumed in regard 
to them, but we may, without offence, dwell upon the com- 
prehensive results of them all. 

The Union exists in absolute integrity, and the republi- 
can system is in complete and triumphant development. 
Without having relinquished any part of their individual- 
ity, the states have more than doubled already, and are 
increasing in numbers and political strength and expansion 
more rapidly than ever before. Without having absorbed 
any state, or having even encroached on any state, the 
confederation has opened itself so as to embrace all the 
new members who have come, and now with capacity for 
further and indefinite enlargements has become fixed, en. 
during and perpetual. Although it was doubted only half 
a century ago whether our political system could be main- 
tained at all, and whether, if maintained, it could guaran- 
tee the peace and hajipiness of society, it stands now con- 
fessed by the world the form of government not only most 
adapted to empire, but also most congenial with the con- 
stitution of human nature. 

When we consider that the nation has been conducted 
to this haven, not only through stormy seas, but altogether, 
also, without a course and without a star; and when we 
consider, moreover, the sum of happiness that has already 
been enjoyed by the American people, and still more the 
influence which the great achievement is exerting for the 
advancement and melioration of the condition of man- 
kind, we see at once that it might have satisfied the highest 
ambition to have been, no matter how humbly, concerned 



302 




m so great transaction. 



Hi ' ll ^ I LIim.hLJ III . I „k„ l .li ,>,,,.. - I L„I,., 



itCDi'il t^lj. 



'!i:i'llini,, 



Certainly, sir, no one "will assert that Hexry Clay, in 
that transaction, performed an obscure, or even a common 
part. On the contrary, from the day on wliicli he entered 
the public service, until that on which he passed the gates 
of death, he was never a follower but always a leader; 
and he marshaled either the party which sustained or that 
which resisted every great measure, equally in the Senate 
and among the people. He led where duty seemed to 
him to indicate, reckless whether he encountered one 
president or twenty presidents; whether he was opposed 
by factions or even by the whole people. Hence it has 
happened, that although that people are not yet agreed 
among themselves on the wisdom of all, or perhaps of 
even any of his great measures, yet they are nevertheless 
unanimous in acknowledging that he was at once the 
greatest, the most faithful and the most reliable of their 
statesmen. Here the effort at discriminating praise of 
Hexry Clay, in regard to his public policy, must stop in 
this place, even on this sad occasion which awakens the 
ardent liberality of his generous survivors. 

But his personal qualities may be discussed without 
apprehension. What were the elements of the success of 
that extraordinary man ? You, sir, knew him longer and 
better than I, and I would prefer to hear you speak of 
them. He was indeed eloquent — all the world knows that. 
He held the keys to the hearts of his countrymen, and he 
turned the wards within them with a skill attained by no 
other master. 

But eloquence was nevertheless only an instrument, 
and one of many that he used. His conversation, his ges- 
ture, his very look was persuasive, seductive, irresistible. 
And his appliance of all these was courteous, patient and 

303 



S5HS 



iiiMi<i.ii,iii,a.iiii-" 



rrntiMniuii 



0b8(;(|i|ies oi 



indefatigable. Defeat only inspired liim witli new resolu- 
tion. He divided opposition by his assiduity of address, 
while he rallied and strengthened his own bands of sup- 
porters by the confidence of success which, feeling himself, 
he easily inspired among his followers. His affections 
were high, and pure, and generous, and the chiefest among 
them was that which the great Italian poet designated as 
the charity of native land. And in him that charity was 
an enduring and overpowering enthusiasm, and it influ- 
enced all his sentiments and conduct, rendering him more 
impartial between conflicting interests and sections than 
any other statesman who has lived since the Revolution. 
Thus, with very great versatility of talent and the most 
catliolic equality of favor, he identified every question, 
whether of domestic administration or foreign policy, with 
his own great name, and so became a perpetual Tribune of 
the people. He needed only to pronounce in favor of a 
measure or against it, here, and immediately popular en- 
thusiasm, excited as by a magic wand, was felt, overcoming 
all opposition in the senate chamber. 

In this way he wrought a change in our political system, 
that I think was not foreseen by its founders. He con- 
verted this branch of the legislature from a negative 
position, or one of equilibrium between the executive and 
the house of representatives, into the active ruling power 
of the republic. Only time can disclose whether this 
great innovation shall be beneficent or even permanent. 
Certainly, sir, the great lights of the senate have set. 
The obscuration is not less palpable to the country than 
to us, who are left to grope our uncertain way here, as in 
a labyrinth, oppressed with self-distrust. The times, too, 
present new embarrassments. 

804 




We are rising to another 



' -.iJI Afff pfffflTJffffffrS^nr S 



.1 : .n- I .1 1| II 



''I'l!!' 'i, 



and a more siiLlimc stage of natural progress — that of 
expanding wealth and rapid territorial aggrandizement. 
Onr institutions throw a broad shadow across the St. 
Lawrence, and stretching beyond the valley of Mexico, 
reaches even to the plains of Central America; while the 
-Sandwich Islands and the shores of China recoirnize it- 
renovating influence. Wherever that influence is felt, a 
desire for protection under those institutions is awakened. 
Expansion seems to be regulated, not by any difhculties ol 
resistance, but by the moderation which results from onr 
own internal constitution. No one knows how rapidly 
that restraint may give way. Who can tell how far or 
how fast it ought to yield. Commerce has brought the 
ancient continents near to us, and created necessities for 
new positions — perhaps connections or colonies there — 
and with the trade and friendship of the elder nations 
their conflicts and collisions are brought to our doors and 
to our hearts. Our sympathy kindles, our indifference 
extinguishes, the fire of freedom in foreign lands. Before 
we shall be fully conscious that a change is going on in 
Europe, we may find ourselves once more divided by that 
eternal line of separation that leaves on the one side those 
of our citizens who obey the impulses of sympathy, while 
on the other are found those who submit only to the coun- 
sels of prudence. Even prudence will soon be required to 
decide whether distant regions, east and west, shall come 
under our own protection, or be left to aggrandize a rap- 
idly spreading and hostile domain of despotism. 

Sir, who among us is equal to these mighty questions ? 
I fear there is no one. Nevertheless, the example of 
Henry Clay remains for our instruction. His genius has 
passed to the realms of light, but his virtues still live here 

305 





0b3e(^i|ics of 



for our emulation. With tliem there will remain also the 
protection and favor of the Most High, if, Ly the practice 
of justice, and the maintenance of freedom we shall de- 
serve it. Let, then, the bier pass on. With sorrow, but 
not without hope, we will follow the revered form that it 
bears to its final resting-place; and then, when that grave 
opens at our feet to receive such an inestimable treasure, 
we will invoke the God of our fathers to send us new 
guides, like him that is now withdrawn, and give us wis- 
dom to obey their instruction. 



^ 



Mr. Jones, of Iowa. 

Mr. President: Of the vast number, who mourn the 
departure of the great man whose voice has so often been 
heard in this hall, I have peculiar cause to regret that 
dispensation which has removed him from among us. He 
was the guardian and director of my collegiate days; four 
of his sons were my college-mates and my warm friends. 
My intercourse with the father was that of a youth and a 
friendly adviser. I shall never cease to feel grateful to 
him — to his now heart-stricken and bereaved widow and 
children, for their many kindnesses to me during four or 
five years of my life. I had the pleasure of renewing my 
acquaintance with him, first, as a delegate in congress, 
while he was a member of this body from 1835 to 1839, 
and again in 1848, as member of this branch of congress ; 
and during the whole of which period, some eight years, 
none but the most kindly feeling existed between us. 

As an humble and unimportant senator, it was my 
fortune to co-operate with him throughout the whole of the 

-'50- — the labor and excitement 





if e I] r il t) I J) y , 



'I'l 



of Avliicli is said to have precipitated his decease. That 
co-operation did not end with the accordant vote on this 
floor, but, in consequence of the unyielding opposition to 
the series of measures known as the " Compromise," ex- 
tended to many private meetings held by his friends, at all 
of which Mr. Clay was present. And whether in i)ublic 
or private life, he everywhere continued to inspire me 
with the most exalted estimate of his patriotism and states- 
manship. Never shall I forget the many ardent appeals he 
made to senators, in and out of the senate, in favor of 
the settlement of our then unhappy sectional differences. 

Immediately after the close of that memorable session 
of congress, during which the nation beheld his great and 
almost superhuman efforts upon this floor to sustain the 
wise counsels of the " Father of his Country," I accom- 
panied him home to Ashland, at his invitation, to revisit 
the place where my happiest days had been spent, with 
the friends who there continued to reside. During that, 
to me, most agreeable and instructive journey, in many 
conversations he evinced the utmost solicitude for the 
welfare and honor of the Republic, all tending to show 
that he believed the happiness of the people and the cause 
of liberty throughout the world depended upon the con- 
tinuance of our glorious Union, and- the avoidance of those 
sectional dissensions which could but alienate the affections 
of one portion of the people from another. With the 
sincerity and fervor of a true patriot, he warned his com- 
panions, in that journey, to withhold all aid from men who 
labored, and from every cause which tended to sow the 
seeds of disunion in the land; and to oppose such, he 
declared himself willing to forego all the ties and associa- 
tions of mere party. 



307 




At a subsequent period, sir, tliis friend of my youth, at 
my earnest and repeated entreaties, consented to tal^e a 
sea voyage from New York to Havana. He remained at 
the latter place a fortnight, and then returned by New Or- 
leans to Ashland. That excursion by sea, he assured me, 
contributed much to relieve him from the sufferings occa- 
sioned by the disease which has just terminated his eventful 
and glorious life. Would to Heaven that he could have 
been persuaded to abandon his duties as a senator, and to 
have remained during the past winter and spring upon that 
Island of Cuba! The country would not, now, perhaps, 
have been called to mourn his loss. 

In some matters of policy connected Avith the adminis- 
tration of our general government, I have disagreed with 
him, yet the purity and sincerity of his motives I never 
doubted; and as a true lover of his country, as an honora- 
ble and honest man, I trust his example will be reverenced 
and followed by the men of this, and of succeeding gen- 
erations. 



^ 
M 



Mr. Brooke. 

Mr. Peesident: As an ardent, personal admirer and 
political friend of the distinguished dead, I claim the 
privilege of adding my humble tribute of respect to his 
memory, and of joining in the general expression of sorrow 
that has gone forth from this chamber. Death, at all 
times, is an instructive monitor, as well as a mournful mes- 
senger; but when his fatal shaft hath stricken down the 
great in intellect and renown, how doubly impressive the 
lesson that it brings home to the heart, that the grave is 
the common lot of all — the great leveler of all earthly 
distinctions ! But at the same time we are taught that in 

SOS 




i|-e»)i'ii t'ii|i|. 



tiiiii'iiiii 



one sense the good and great can_|never diefforjlie.memory 
of tlieir virtues and their bright exami)le will live through 
all coming time in an immortality that Ijlooms beyond the 
grave. The consolation of this thought may calm our sor- 
row; and, in the language of one of our own poets, it may 
be asked: 



" Wliy wcop \c, thou, fur him. who having run 
The bound of man's appointed years, at last, 
Life's blessings all enjoyed, life's labors done, 

Serenely to his final rest has passed ; 
While the soft memoi-y of his virtues yet 
Lingers, like twilight hues when the bright sun has set ?" 

It will be doing no injustice, sir, to the living or the 
dead to say, that no better specimen of the true American 
character can be found in our history than that of Mr. 
Clay. With no adventitious advantages of birth or for- 
tune, he Avon his way by the efforts of his own genius to 
the highest distinction and honor. Ardently attached to 
the principles of civil and religious liberty, patriotism 
was with him both a passion and a sentiment — a passion 
that gave energy to his ambition, and a sentiment that 
pervaded all his thoughts and actions, concentrating them 
upon his country as the idol of his heart. The bold and 
manly frankness in the expression of his opinions which 
always characterized him, has often been the subject of 
remark; and in all his victories it may be truly said he 
never " stooped to conquer." In his long and brilliant 
political career, personal considerations never, for a single 
instant, caused him to swerve from the strict line of duty, 
and none have ever doubted his deep sincerity in that 
memorable expression to Mr. Preston. " Sir, I had rather 
be right than be President." 

309 




ffiwn"fiii!i.'ii,',iiiiii ii.N, I 



V' (9b.st'()i|lijs of 



'TTMTiiiii 



This is not the time nor occasion, sir, to enter into a 
detail of the public services of Mr. Clay, interwoven 
as they are with the historj' of tlie country for half a cen- 
tury; but I cannot refrain from adverting to the last 
crowning act of his glorious life — his great effort in the 
Thirty -first Congress for the preservation of the peace 
and integrity of this great Republic, as it was this effort 
that shattered his bodily strength, and hastened the con- 
summation of his death. The union of the states, as being 
essential to our prosperity and happiness, was the para- 
mount proposition in his political creed, and the slight- 
est symptom of danger to its perpetuity filled him -with 
alarm, and called forth all the energies of his body and 
mind. In his earlier life he had met this danger and 
overcome it. In the conflict of contending factions it 
again appeared; and coming forth from the repose of pri- 
vate life, to which age and infirmity had carried him, with 
unabated strength of intellect, he again entered upon the 
arena of political strife, and again success crowned his 
efforts, and peace and harmony were restored to a dis- 
tracted people. But, unequal to the mighty struggle, his 
bodily strength sank beneath it, and he retired from the 
field of his glory to yield up his life as a holy sacrifice to 
his beloved country. It has well been said that peace has 
its victories as well as war; and how bright upon the page 
of history, will^ be the record of this great victory of in- 
tellect, of reason, and of moral suasion, over the spirit of 
discord and sectional animosities ! 

We this day, Mr. President, commit his memory to the 
regard and afiection of his admiring countrymen. It is a 
consolation to them and to us to know that he died in full 
possession of his glorious intellect, and, what is better, in 

310 







^''I.IMI; 



the enjoymcut of that " peace which the world can neither 
give nor take away." He sank to rest as the fiill-orbed 
king of day, unshorn of a single beam, or rather like the 
planet of morning, his brightness was but eclipsed by the 
opening to him of a more full and perfect day. 

•' No waning of fire, no paling of ray, 
But rising, still rising, as passing away. 
Farewell, gallant eagle, thou'rt buried in light — 
God speed thee to heaven, lost star of our night." 

The resolutions submitted by Mr. Underwood, were 
then unanimously agreed to. 

Ordered, That the Secretary communicate these resolu- 
tions to the House of Representatives. 

On motion of Mr. Underwood, 

Resolved, That, as an additional mark of respect to the 
memory of the deceased, the Senate do now adjourn. 



i 




^11 




Obsi:t]i!ies of 



HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. 




A message was received from the Senate, by Asbury 
DiCKiNS,Esq., its secretary, communicating information of 
the death of Henry Clay, late senator from the state of 
Kentucky, and the proceedings of the Senate thereon. 

The resolutions of the Senate having been read, 



Mr. Breckenridge the rose and said : 

Mr. Speaker : I rise to perform the melancholy duty of 
announcing to this body the death of Henry Clay, late a 
senator in congress from the commonwealth of Kentucky. 

Mr. Clay expired at his lodgings in this city yesterday 
morning, at seventeen minutes past eleven o'clock, in the 
seventy-sixth year of his age. His noble intellect was 
unclouded to the last. After protracted sufferings, he 
passed away without pain; and so gently did the spirit 
leave his fvame, that the moment of departure was not ob- 
served by the friends who watched at his bedside. His last 
hours were cheered by the presence of an affectionate son; 
and he died surrounded by friends who, during his long 
illness, had done all that affection could suggest to sooth 
his sufferings. 

Although this sad event has been expected for many 
weeks, the shock it produced, and the innumerable tributes 

312 



p' iteiil'ij Cii|i|. nil 




of respect to his memory exhibited on every side, and in 
every form, prove the depth of the public sorrow, and the 
greatness of the public loss. 

Imperi?hably associated, as his name has been, for fifty 
years, with every great event affecting the fortunes of our 
country, it is difficult to realize that he is indeed gone for- 
ever. It is difficult to feel that we shall see no more his 
noble form within these walls — that we shall hear no more 
his patriot tones, now rousing his countrymen to vindicate 
their rights against a foreign foe; now imploring them 
to preserve concord among themselves. We shall see him 
no more. The memory and the fruits of his services alone 
remain to us. Amidst the general gloom, the capitol itself 
looks desolate, as if the genius of the place had departed. 
Already the intelligence has reached almost every quarter 
of the Republic, and a great people mourn with us, to-day, 
the death of their most illustrious citizen. Sympathizing, 
as we do, deeply, with his family and friends, yet private 
affliction is absorbed in the general sorrow. The specta- 
cle of a whole community lamenting the loss of a great 
man, is far more touching than any manifestation of pri- 
vate grief. In speaking of a loss which is national, I will 
not attempt to describe the universal burst of grief with 
which Kentucky will receive these tidings. The attempt 
would be vain to depict the gloom that will cover her 
people, when they know that the pillar of lire is removed 
which has guided their footsteps for the life of a gene 
ration. 

It is known to the country, that from the memorable 
session of 1849-'50, Mr. Clay's health gradually declin il. 
Although several years of his senatorial term remained 
he did not propose to continue in the public service longer 

313 






»aWallffl<Mffii« 



0bscf]i|ies of 



GMliiiiiu:. 



than the present session. He came to Washington chiefly 
to defend, if it should become necessary, the measures 
of adjustment, to the adoption of which he so largely con- 
tributed; but the condition of his health did not allow 
him, at any time, to participate in the discussions of the 
senate. Through the winter, he was confined almost 
wholly to his room, with slight changes in his condition, 
but gradually losing the remnant of his strength. Through 
the long and dreary winter, he conversed much and cheer- 
fully with his friends, and expressed a deep interest in 
public affairs. Although he did not expect a restoration 
to health, he cherished the hope that the mild i-eason of 
spring would bring to him strength enough to return to 
Ashland, and die in the bosom of his family. But, alas ! 
spring, that brings life to all nature, brought no life nor 
hope to him. After the month of March, his vital powers 
rapidly wasted, and for weeks he lay patiently awaiting 
the stroke of death. But the approach of the destroyer 
had no terrors for him. No clouds overhung his future. 
He met the end with composure, and his pathway to the 
grave was brightened by the immortal hopes which spring 
from the Christian faith. 

Not long before his death, having just returned from 
Kentucky, I bore to him a token of afl'ection from his ex- 
cellent wife. Never can I forget his appearance, his 
manner, or his words. After speaking of his family, his 
friends and his country, he changed the conversation to 
his own future, and looking on me with his fine eye un- 
dimmed, and his voice full of its original compass and 
melody, he said, " I am not afraid to die, sir. I have 
hope, faith, and some confidence. I do not think any man 
can be entirely certain in regard to his future state, but I 

314 



-%' 




^:8 



have au abiding trust in the merits and mediation of our 
Savior." It will assuage the grief of his family to know 
that he looked hopefully beyond the tomb, and a Christian 
people will rejoice to hear that such a man, in his last 
hours, reposed with simplicity and confidence ujion the 
promises of the Gospel. 

It is the custom, on occasions like this, to speak of the 
parentage and childhood of the deceased, and to follow 
him, step by step, through life. I will not attempt to 
relate even all the great events of Mr. Clay's life, because 
they are familiar to the whole country, and it would be 
needless to enumerate a long list of public services which 
form a part of American history. 

Beginning life as a friendless boy, with few advantages, 
save those conferred by nature, while yet a minor, he left 
Virginia, the state of his birth, and commenced the prac- 
tice of law at Lexington, in Kentucky. At a bar remark- 
able for its numbers and talent, Mr. Clay soon rose to 
the first rank. At a very early age he was elected from 
the county of Fayette to the General Assembly of Ken- 
tucky, and was the speaker of that body. Coming into 
the senate of the United States, for the first time, in 1806, 
he entered upon a parliamentary career, the most brilliant 
and successful in our annals. From that time he remained 
habitually in the public eye. As a senator, as a member 
of this house and its speaker, as a representative of his 
country abroad, and as a high officer in the executive de- 
partment of the government, he was intimately connected, 
for fifty years, with every great measure of American 
policy. Of the mere party measures of this period, I do 
not propose to speak. Many of them have passed away, 
and are remembered only as the occasions for the great 

315 



•>■>»" i.iiiiii..i..ii.iNiiiiiin .nil. 



PTnnnr.; 



O'K^cqmes of 




intellectual efforts which marked their discussion. Con- 
cerning others, opinions are still divided. They will go 
into history, with the reasons on either side rendered by 
the greatest intellects of the time. 

As a leader in a deliberative body, Mr. Clay had no 
equal in America. In him, intellect, person, eloquence, 
and courage, united to form a character fit to command. 
He fired with his own enthusiasm, and controlled by his 
amazing will, individuals and masses. No reverse could 
crash his spirit, nor defeat reduce him to despair. Equally 
erect and dauntless in prosperity and adversity, when suc- 
cessful, he moved to the accomplishment of his purposes 
with severe resolution; when defeated, he rallied his bro- 
ken bands around him, and from his eagle eye shot along 
their ranks the contagion of his own courage. Destined 
for a leader, he everywhere asserted his destiny. In his 
long and eventful life he came in contact with men of all 
ranks and professions, but he never felt that he was in the 
presence of a man superior to himself. In the assemblies 
of the people, at the bar, in the senate — everywhere within 
the circle of his personal presence he assumed and main- 
tained a position of pre-eminence. 

But the supremacy of Mr. Clay, as a party leader, was 
not his only, nor his highest title to renown. That title 
is to be found in the purely patriotic spirit which, on great 
occasions, always signalized his conduct. We have had 
no statesman who, in periods of real and imminent public 
peril, has exhibited a more genuine and enlarged patriot- 
ism than Henry Clay. Whenever a question presented 
itself actually threatening the existence of the Union. Mr. 
Clay, rising above the passions of the hour, always exerted 
his powers to solve it peacefully and honorably. Although 

316 



1' .' II I (I t lil 



■' ''I'I'llllll... 




.>>^: 




more liable than most men, from his impetuous and ardent 
nature, to feel strongly the passions common to us all, it 
was his rai*e faculty to be able to subdue them in a great 
crisis, and to hold, toward all sections of the confederacy, 
the language of concord and brotherhood. 

Sir, it will be a proud pleasure to every true American 
heart to remember the grrat occasions when Mr. Clay has 
displayed a sublime patriotism — when the ill-temper en- 
gendered by the times, and the miserable jealousies of the 
day, seemed to have been driven from his bosom by the 
expulsive power of nobler feelings — wdien every throb of 
his heart was given to his country; every effort of his 
intellect dedicated to her service. Who does not remem- 
ber the three periods when the American system of gov- 
ernment was exposed to its severest trials; and who does 
not know that when history shall relate the struggle which 
preceded, and the dangers which were averted by the 
Missouri compromise, the Tarifl' compromise of 1832, and 
the adjustment of 1850, the same pages will record the 
genius, the eloquence, and the patriotism of Henry Clay"? 

Nor was it in Mr. Clay's nature to lag behind until 
measures of adjustment were matured, and then come for- 
ward to swell a majority. On the contrary, like a bold 
and real statesman, he was ever among the first to meet 
the peril, and^ hazard his fame upon the remedy. It is 
fresh in the memory of us all that, when lately the fury of 
sectional discord threatened to sever the confederacy, Mr. 
Clay, though withdrawn from public life, and oppressed 
by the burden of years, came back to the senate — the 
theatre of his glory — and devoted the remnant of his 
strength to the sacred duty of preserving the union of the 
states. 

317 




Obsequies of 






With characteristic courage he took the lead in propos- 
ing a scheme of settlement. But while he was willing to 
assume the responsibility of proposing a plan, he did not, 
with petty ambition, insist upon its adoption to the ex- 
clusion of other modes; but, taking his own as a starting 
point for discussion and practical action, he nobly labored 
with his compatriots to change and improve it in such 
form as to make it an acceptable adjustment. Throughout 
the long and arduous struggle the love of country expelled 
from his bosom the spirit of selfishness, and Mr. Clay 
proved, for the third time, that though he was ambitious 
and loved glory, he had no ambition to mount to fame on 
the confusions of his country. And this conviction is 
lodged in the hearts of the people; the party measures 
and the party passions of former times have not, for sev- 
eral years, interposed between Mr. Clay and the masses 
of his countrymen. After 1850, he seemed to feel that his 
mission was accomplished; and, during the same period, 
the regards and affections of the American people have 
been attracted to him in a remarkable degree. For many 
months, the warmest feelings, the deepest anxieties of all 
parties, centered upon the dying statesman; the glory of 
his great actions shed a mellow lustre on his declining 
years; and to fill the measure of his fame, his countrymen, 
weaving for him the laurel wreath, with common hands, 
did bind it about his venerable brows, and send him 
crowned, to history. 

The life of Mr. Clay, sir, is a striking example of the 
abiding fame which surely awaits the direct and candid 
statesman. The entire absence of equivocation or disguise, 
in all his acts, was .his master-key to the popular heart; 
for while the people will forgive the errors of a bold and 

318 




tUpi\t| Giqy. 




open nature, lie sins past forgiveness, who deliberately 
deceives them. Hence Mr. Clay, though often defeated 
in his measures of policy, always secured the respect of 
his opponents, without losing the confidence of his friends. 
He never paltered in a double sense. The country was never 
in doubt as to his opinions or his purposes. In all the 
contests of his time, his position on great public questions 
was as clear as the sun in a cloudless sky. Sir, standing 
by the grave of this great man, and considering these 
things, how contemptible does appear the mere legerde- 
main of politics ! What a reproach is his life on that false 
policy which would trifle with a great and upright people ! 
If I were to write his epitaph, I would inscribe, as the 
highest eulogy, on the stone which shall mark his resting- 
place, "Here lies a man, who was in the public service 
for fifty years, and never attempted to deceive his coun- 
trymen." 

While the youth of America should imitate his noble 
qualities, they may take courage from his career, and 
note the high proof it afilbrds that, under our equal insti- 
tutions, the avenues to honor are open to all. Mr. Clay 
rose by the force of his own genius, unaided by power, 
patronage or wealth. At an age when our young men are 
usually advanced to the higher schools of learning, pro- 
vided only with the rudiments of an English education, he 
turned his steps to the west, and amidst the rude collisions 
of a border-life, matured a character whose highest exhi- 
bitions were destined to mark eras in his country's history. 
Beginning on the frontiers of American civilization, the 
orphan boy, supported only by the consciousness of his own 
powers, and by the confidence of the people, surmounted 
all the barriers of adverse fortune, and won a glorious 

319 



ti 



rniiiiHiHiM 



"ISH 



name in the annals of his country. Let the "'enerous 
youth, fired with honorable ambition, remember that the 
American system of government offers on every hand 
bounties to merit. If, like Clay, orphanage, obscurity, 
poverty, shall oppress him; yet, if, like Clay, he feels the 
Promethean spark within, let him remember that his coun- 
try, like a generous mother, extends her arms to welcome 
and to cherish every one of her children whose genius 
and worth may promote her prosperity or increase her 
renown. 

Mr. Speaker, the signs of woe around us, and the gen- 
eral voice, announce that another great man has fallen. 
Our consolation is that he was not taken in the vigor of 
his manhood, but sank into the grave at the close of a long 
and illustrious career. The great statesmen who have 
filled the largest space in the public eye, one by one are 
passing away. Of the three great leaders of the sena te 
one alone remains, and he must follow soon. We shall 
witness no more their intellectual struggles in the Ameri- 
can forum ; but the monuments of their genius will be 
cherished as the common property of the people, and their 
names will continue to confer dignity and renown upon 
their country. 

Not less illustrious than the greatest of these will be 
the name of Clay — a name pronounced with pride by 
Americans in every quarter of the globe; a name to be 
remembered while history shall record the struggles of 
modern Greece for freedom, or the spirit of liberty burn 
in the South American bosom; a living and immortal 
name — a name that would descend to posterity without 
the aid of letters, borne by tradition from generation to 
Every memorial of such a man will possess 

320 



generation 



iliiiiry tl;(i.i. 



QlilMi^ 



a meaning and a value to his countrymen. His tomb will 
be a hallowed spot. Great memories will cluster there, 
and his countrymen, as they visit it, may well exclaim — 

" Such graves as his are pilgrim shrines, 
Shrines to no creed or code confined ; 
Tlie Delphian vales, the Palestines, 
The Meccas of the mind." 

Mr. Speaker, I offer the following resolutions: 

Resolved, That the House of Representatives of the 
United States, has received, with the deepest sensibility, 
intelligence of the death of Henry Clay. 

Resolved, That the officers and members of the House of 
Representatives will wear the usual badge of mourning 
for thirty days, as a testimony of the profound respect 
this House entertains for the memory of the deceased. 

Resolved, That the officers and members of the House of 
Representatives, in a body, will attend the funeral of 
Henry Clay, on the day appointed for that purpose by 
the Senate of the United States. 

Resolved, That the proceedings of this House, in relation 
to the death of Henry Clay, be communicated to the 
family of the deceased, by the clerk. 

Resolved, That as a further mark of respect for the 
memory of the deceased, this House do now adjourn. 



Mr. EwiNG rose, and said: 

A noble heart has ceased to beat forever. A long life 
of l)rilliant and self-devoted public service is finished at 
last. We now stand at its conclusion, looking back, 
through the changeful history of that life to its beginning, 



21 



321 




05ge^i|icg of 

iiiiniiiiiii, __ 




contemporaneous with the very birth of the Republic, and 
its varied events mingle, in our hearts and our memories, 
with the triumphs and calamities, the weakness and the 
power, the adversity and prosperity of a country we love 
so much. As we contemplate this sad event, in this 
place, the shadows of the past gather over us; the memo- 
ries of events long gone crowd upon us, and the shades of 
departed patriots seem to hover about us, and wait to re- 
ceive into their midst the spirit of one who was worthy to 
be a colaborer with them in a common cause, and to share 
in the rewards of their virtues. Henceforth he must be 
to us as one of them. 

They say he was ambitious. If so, it was a grievous 
fault, and grievously has he answered it. He has found 
in it naught but disappointment. It has but served to 
aggravate the mortification of his defeats, and furnish an 
additional lustre to the triumph of his foes. Those who 
come after us may, aye, they will, inquire why his statue 
stands not among the statues of those whom men thought 
ablest and worthiest to govern. 

But his ambition was a high and holy feeling, unselfish, 
magnanimous. Its aspirations were for his country's 
good, and its triumph was his country's prosperity. 
Whether in honor or reproach, in triumph or defeat, 
that heart of his never throbbed with one pulsation, save 
for her honor and her welfare. Turn to him in that last, 
best deed, and crowning glory of a life so full of public 
service and of honor, when his career of personal ambi- 
tion was finished forever. Rejected again and again by 
his countrymen; just abandoned by a party which would 
scarce have had an existence without his genius, his cour- 
age, and his labors, that great heart, ever firm and defiant 



a 




■!-)».,aw,!.k,»».^im 



i)-Ci)l-(j tlqij 



ll^l'l'lli"li. 




to the assaults of his enemies, but defenceless against the 
ingratitude of friends; doubtless wrung with the bitterest 
mortification of his life — then it was, and under 
cumstauces as these the gathering storm rose upon his 
country. All eyes turned to him ; all voices called for 
those services which, in the hour of prosperity and secu- 
rity, they had so carelessly rejected. With no misanthropic 
chagrin; with no morose, selfish resentment, he forgot all 
but his country, and that country endangered. He returns 
to the scene of his labors and his fame which he had 
thought to have left forever. A scene — that American 
senate chamber — clothed in no gorgeous drapery, shrouded 
in no superstitious awe, or ancient reverence for hereditary 
power, but to a reflecting American mind more full of 
interest, or dignity, and of grandeur, than any spot on this 
broad earth, not made holy by religion's consecrating seal. 
See him as he enters there, tremblingly, but hopefully, 
upon the last, most momentous, perhaps most doubtful 
conflict of his life. Sir, many a gay tournament has been 
more dazzling to the eye of fancy, more gorgeous and 
imposing in the display of jewelry and cloth^of gold, in 
the sound of heralds' trumpets, in the grand array of 
princely beauty and of royal pride. Many a battle field 
has trembled beneath a more ostentatious parade of human 
power, and its conquerors have been crowned with laurels, 
honored with triumphs, and apotheosized amid the demi- 
gods of history; but to the thoughtful, hopeful, philan- 
thropic student of tlie annals of his race, never was there 
a conflict in which such dangers were threatened, such 
hopes imperiled, or the hero of which deserved a warmer 
gratitude, a nobler triumph, or a prouder monument. 
Sir, from that long, anxious and exhausting conflict, he 

323 




In Tilliiin 




never rose again. In that last battle for his country's 
honor and his country's safety, he received the mortal 
wound which laid him low, and we now mourn the death 
of a martyred patriot. 

But never, in all the grand drama which the story of 
liis life arrays, never has he presented a sublimer or a 
more touching spectacle than in those last days of his de- 
cline and death. Broken with the storms of state, wounded 
and scathed in many a fiery conflict, that aged, worn and 
decayed body, in such mournful contrast with the never- 
dying strength of his giant spirit, he seemed a proud and 
sacred, though a crumbling monument of past glory. Stand- 
ing among us, like some ancient colossal ruin amid the 
degenerate and more diminutive structures of modern times, 
its vast proportions magnified by the contrast, he reminded 
us of those days when there were giants in the land, and 
we remembered that even then there was none whose prow- 
ess could withstand his arm. To watch him in that slow 
decline, yielding with dignity, and, as it were, inch by 
inch, to that last enemy, as a hero yields to a conquering 
foe, the glorious light of his intellect blazing still in all 
its wonted brilliancy, and setting at defiance the clouds 
that vainly attempted to obscure it, he was more full of 
interest than in the day of his glory and his power. There 
are some men whose brightest intellectual emanations rise 
so little superior to the instincts of the animal, tliat we 
are led fearfully to doubt that cherished truth of the soul's 
immortality, which, even in despair, men press to their 
doubting hearts. But it is in the death of such a man as 
he, that we are reassured by the contemplation of a kin- 
dred, though superior spirit, of a soul which, immortal, 
like his fame, knows no old age, no decay, no death. 

324 



i::T-,iniiMmnii-.in.mimi'.pT,n-i,u i-,.,iLiii.,.iiimii„r.MM.iii7T; 



' "imTTMiiii. 



The wondrous light of his unmatched intellect may have 
dazzled a world; the eloquence of that inspired tongue 
may have enchanted millions, but there are few who have 
sounded the depths of that noble heart. To see hiiu in 
sickness and in health, in joy and in sadness, in the silent 
watches of the night and in the busy day-time — this it Avas 
to know and love him. To see the impetuous torrent of 
that resistless will; the hurricane of those passions hushed 
in peace, breathe calmly and gently as a summer zephyr; 
to feel the gentle pressure of that hand in the grasp of 
friendship, which, in the rage of fiery conflict, would hurl 
scorn and defiance at his foe; to see that eagle eye, which 
oft would burn with patriotic ardor, or flash with the 
lightning of his anger, beam with the kindliest expressions 
of tenderness and afl'ection — then it was, and then alone, 
we could learn to know and feel that that heart was 
warmed by the same sacred fire from above which enkindled 
the light of his resplendent intellect. In the death of 
such a man even patriotism itself might pause, and for a 
moment stand aloof, while friendship shed a tear of sorrow 
upon his bier. 



" His life was gentle ; and the elements 
So mix'cl in him, that Nature might stand up, 
And say to all the world, — T/iis was a man /" 

But who can estimate his country's loss ? What tongue 
portray the desolation which, in this hour, throughout this 
broad land, hangs like a gloomy pall over his grief-stricken 
countrymen ? How poorly can words like mine translate 
the eloquence of a whole people's grief for a patriot's 
death. For a nation's loss let a nation mourn. For that 
stupendous calamity to our country and mankind, be the 

325 



l^^5s!e(]i|ics of 

"Tl!!! 




"l^? 



wF^^ 



heavens hung with black; let the wailing elements chant 
his dirge, and the universal heart of man throb with one 
common pang of grief and anguish. 



Mr. Caskie said: 

Mr, Speaker : Unwell as I am, I must try to lay a 
single laurel leaf in that open coffin which is already 
garlanded by the eloquent tributes to the illustrious 
departed, which have been heard in this now solemn 
hall; for I come, sir, from the district of his birth. I rep- 
resent on this floor that old Hanover, so proud of her 
Henrys — her Patrick Henry and her Henry Clay. I 
speak for a people among whom he has always had as 
earnest and devoted friends as were ever the grace and 
glory of a patriot and statesman. 

I shall attempt no sketch of his life. That you have 
had from other and abler hands than mine. Till yesterday 
that life was, of his own free gift, the property of his 
country; to-day it belongs to her history. It is known to 
all, and will not be forgotten. Constant, stern opponent 
of his political school as has been my state, I say, for her, 
that nowhere in this broad land are his great qualities 
more admired, or is his death more mourned, than in 
Virginia. Well may this be so; for she is his mother, and 
he was her son. 

Mr. Speaker, when I remember the party strifes in 
which he was so much mingled, and through which we all, 
more or less, have passed, and then survey this scene, and 
think how far, as the lightning has borne the news that he 
is gone, half masted flags are drooping and church bells are 
tolling, and hearts are sorrowing, I can but feel that it is 

326 



,l.l.l..l,«,l,l,..,„^,^^ 



[!l!llllUii, 




good for man to die. For when Death enters, ! how 
the unkindnesses, and jealousies, and rivalries of life do 
vanish, and how, like incense from an altar, do peace, and 
friendship, and all the sweet charities of our nature, rise 
around the corpse which was once a man ! And of a 
truth, Mr. Speaker, never was more of veritable noble 
manhood cased in mortal mould than was found in him to 
whose memory this brief and humble, yet true and heart- 
felt tribute is paid. But his eloquent voice is hushed, his 
high heart is stilled. " Like a shock of corn fully ripe 
he has been gathered to his fathers." With more than 
threescore years and ten upon him, and honors clustered 
thick about him; in the full possession of unclouded intel- 
lect, and all the consolations of Christianity, he has met 
the fate which is evitable by none. Lamented by all his 
countrymen, his name is bright on Fame's immortal roll. 
He has finished his course, and he has his crown. What 
more fruit can life bear ? What can it give that Henry 
Clay has not gained ? 

Then, Mr. Speaker, around his tomb should be heard, 
not only the dirge that wails his loss, but the jubilant 
anthem which sounds that on the world's battle field 
another victory has been won — another incontestable great- 
ness achieved. 



j\[r. Chandler, of Pennsylvania, said: 

Mr. Speaker: It would seem as if the solemn invocation 
of the honorable gentleman from Kentucky, (Mr. Ewixg) 
was receiving an early answer, and that the heavens are 
hung in black, and the wailing elements are singing the 
funeral dirge of Henry Clay. Amid this elemental 

327 



fc 



• 




iiffliiiiiiwmjMii'"iwri.!hrmiiiiim UiMA 



mM'Ti^ 



&hs&Cim&s of 



gloom, and the distress whicli pervades the nation at the 
death of Henry Clay, private grief should not obtrude 
itself upon notice, nor personal anguish seek for utterance. 
Silence is the best exponent of individual sorrow, and the 
heart that knoweth its own bitterness, shrinks from an 
exposition of its affliction. 

Could I have consulted my own feelings on the event 
which occupies the attention of the house at the present 
moment, I should even have forborne attendance here, and 
in the solitude and silence of my chamber have mused 
upon the terrible lesson which has been administered to 
the people and the nation. But I represent a constituency 
who justly pride themselves upon the unwavering attach- 
ment they' have ever felt and manifested to Henry Clay 
— a constant, pervading, hereditary love. The son has 
taken up the father's aifection, and amid all the professions 
of political attachments to others, whom the accidents of 
party have made prominent, and the success of party has 
made powerful, true to his own instincts, and true to the 
sanctified legacy of his father, he has placed the name of 
Henry Clay forward and pre-eminent as the exponent of 
what is greatest in statesmanship and purest in patriotism. 
And even, sir, when party fealty caused other attachments 
to be avowed for party uses, the preference was limited to 
the occupancy of office, and superiority admitted for Clay 
in all that is reckoned above_party estimation. 

Nor ought I to forbear to add that, as the senior mem- 
ber of the delegation which represents my commonwealth, 
I am requested to utter the sentiments of the peoj^le of 
Pennsylvania at large, who yield to no portion of this 
great Union in their appreciation of the talents, their rev- 
erence for the lofty patriotism, their admiration of the 

323 



fiTTm 



ifcoi-ijGl^if. " 




statesmanship, and hereafter their love of the memory of 
Henry Clay. 

I cannot, therefore, be silent on this occasion without 
injustice to the afiections of my constituency, even though 
I painfully feel how inadequate to the reverence and love 
my people have toward that statesman must be all that I 
have to utter on this mournful occasion. 

I know not, Mr. Chairman, where now the nation is to 
find the men she needs in peril; either other calls than 
those of politics are holding in abeyance the talents which 
the nation may need, or else a generation is to pass un- 
distinguished by the greatness of our statesmen. Of the 
noble minds that have swayed the senate, one yet survives 
in the maturity of powerful intellect, carefully disciplined 
and nobly exercised. May He, who has thus far blessed 
our nation, spare to her and the world, that of which the 
world must always envy our country the possession ! But 
my business is with the dead. 

The biography of Henry Clay, from his childhood 
upward, is too familiar to every American for me to tres- 
pass on the time of this house by a reference directly 
thereto; and the honorable gentlemen who have preceded 
me have, with affectionate hand and appropriate delicacy, 
swept away the dust which nearly fourscore years have 
scattered over a part of the record, and have made our 
pride greater in his life, and our grief more poignant at 
his death, by showing some of those passages which attract 
respect to our republican institutions, of which Mr. Clay's 
whole life was the able support and the most successful 
illustration. 

It would, then, be a work of supererogation for me to 
renew that effort, though inquiry into the life and conduct 

329 



l„ll,.,lllUHil.lll,m..UIIIL.IMJIIl,JMI 



I'll 



Enni 



(!)5se(^i|ias of 



of Henry Clay would present new themes for private 
eulogy, new grounds for public gratitude. 

How rare is it, Mr. Speaker, that the great man, living, 
can with confidence rely on extensive personal friendship, 
or dying, think to awaken a sentiment of regret beyond 
that which includes the public loss or the disappointment 
of individual hopes. Yet, sir, the message which yester- 
day went forth from this city that Henry Clay was dead, 
brought sorrow, personal, private, special sorrow, to the 
hearts of thousands; each of whom felt that from his own 
love for, his long attachment to, his disinterested hopes in, 
Henry Clay, he had a particular sorrow to cherish and 
express, which weighed upon his heart separate from'the 
sense of national loss. 

No man, Mr. Speaker, in our nation, had the art so to 
identify himself with public measures of the most momen- 
tous character, and to maintain, at the same time, almost 
universal afi'ection, like that great statesman. His busi- 
ness, from his boyhood was with national concerns, and he 
dealt with them as with familiar things. And yet his 
sympathies were with individual interests, enterprises, 
affections, joys, and sorrows; and while every patriot 
bowed in humble deference to his lofty attainments and 
heart-felt gratitude for his national services, almost every 
man in this great Republic knew that the great statesman 
was, in feeling and experience, identified with his own 
position. Hence the universal love of the people; hence 
their enthusiasm, in all times, for his fame. Hence, sir, 
their present grief. 

Many other public men of our country have distinguished 
themselves and brought honor to the nation by superiority 
in some peculiar branch of public service, but it seems to 

330 





have been the gift of Mr. Clay to have acquired peculiar 
eminence in every path of duty he was called to tread. 
In the earnestness of debate, which great public interests 
and distinguished opposing talents excited in this house, 
he had no superior in energy, force or effect. Yet, as the 
presiding officer, by blandness of language, and firmness 
of purpose, he soothed and made orderly ;7and thus, by 
official dignity, he commanded the respect which energy 
had secured to him on the floor. 

Wherever official or social duties demanded an exercise 
of his power, there was a pre-eminence which seemed 
prescriptively his own. In the lofty debate of the senate, 
and the stirring harangues to popular assemblages, he was 
the orator of the nation and of the people; and the sin- 
cerity of purpose and the unity of design evinced in all 
he said or did, fixed in the public mind a confidence strong 
and expansive as the aflections he had won. 

Year after year, sir, has Henry Clay been achievino- 
the work of the mission with which he was intrusted- 
and it was only when the warmest wishes of his warmest 
friends were disappointed, that he entered on the fruition 
of a patriot's highest hopes, and stood in the full enjoy- 
ment of that admiration and confidence which nothino- but 
the antagonism of party relations could have divided. 

How rich that enjoyment must have been it i.s only for 
us to imagine. How eminently deserved it was, we and 
the world can attest. 

The love and the devotion of his political friends were 
cheering and grateful to his heart, and were acknowledged 
in all his life — were recognized even to his death. 

The contest in the senate chamber or the forum were 
rewarded with success achieved, and tlie great victor could 

331 



yii^i...' iiin™! 



'Ob »cCmhs of 

IfiTiwiiiiii.i , 




enjoy the ovation which partial friendship or the gratitude 
of the benefit prepared. But the triumph of his life was 
no party achievement. It was not in the applause which 
admiring friends and defeated antagonists offered to his 
measureless success, that he found the reward of his la- 
bors, and comprehended the extent of his mission. 

It was only when friends and antagonists paused in 
their contests, appalled at the public difficulties and na- 
tional dangers which had been accumulating, unseen and 
unregarded; it was only when the nation itself felt the 
danger, and acknowledged the inefficacy of party action 
as a remedy, that Henry Clay calculated the full extent 
of his powers, and enjoyed the reward of their saving 
exercise. Then, sir, you saw, and I saw, party designa- 
tions dropped, and party allegiance disavowed, and anx- 
ious patriots, of all localities and name, turn toward the 
country's benefactor as the man for the terrible exigencies 
of the hour; and the sick chamber of Henry Clay be- 
came the Delphos whence were given out the oracles that 
presented the means and the measures of our Union's 
safety. There, sir, and not in the high places of the coun- 
try, were the labors and sacrifices of half a century to be 
rewarded and closed. With his right yet in that senate 
which he had entered the youngest, and lingered still the 
eldest member, he felt that his work was done, and the 
object of his life accomplished. Every cloud that had 
dimmed the noonday lustre had been dissipated; and the 
retiring orb, which sunk from the sight of the nation in 
fullness and beauty, will yet pour up the horizon a posthu- 
mous glory that shall tell of the splendor and greatness of 
the luminary that has passed away. 













Mr. Bayly, of Virginia. 

Mr. Speaker: Altliougli I have been all my life a polit- 
ical opponent of Mr. Clay, yet from my Loyliood I have 
been upon terms of personal friendship with him. More 
than twenty years ago, I was introduced to him by my 
father, who was his personal friend. From that time to 
this, there has existed between us as great personal inti- 
macy as the disparity in our years and our political differ- 
ence would justify. After I became a member of this 
house, and upon his return to the senate, subsequent to his 
resignation in 1842, the warm regard, upon his part, for 
the daughter of a devoted friend of forty years' standing, 
made him a constant visitor at my house, and frequently a 
guest at my table. These circumstances make it proper, 
that upon this occasion, I should pay this last tribute to 
his memory. I not only knew him well, as a statesman, 
but I knew him better in most unreserved social inter- 
course. The most happy circumstance, as I esteem it, of 
my political life, has been, that I have thus known each of 
our great congressional triumvirate. 

I, sir, never knew a man of higher qualities than Mr. 
Clay. His very faults originated in high qualities. With 
as great self-possession, with greater self-reliance than any 
man I ever knew, he possessed moral and physical courage 
to as high a degree as any man who ever lived. Confident 
in his own judgment, never doubting as to his own course, 
fearing no obstacle that might lie in his way, it was al- 
most impossible that he should not have been imperious 
in his character. Never doubting himself as to what, in 
his opinion, duty and patriotism required at his hands, it 
was natural that he should sometimes have been impatient 





. HIIP 



if ,1 



&hscC\[\h$ of 



li^iMTl 



with those more doubting and timid than himself. His 
were qualities to have made a great general, as they were 
qualities that did make him a great statesman, and these 
qualities were so obvious that, during the darkest period 
of our late war with Great Britain, Mr. Madison had de- 
termined, at one time, to make him general-in-chief of the 
American army. 

Sir, it is but a short time since the American Congress 
buried the first one that went to the grave of that great 
triumvirate. We are now called upon to bury another. 
The third, thank God ! still lives, and long may he live to 
enlighten his countrymen by his wisdom, and set them the 
example of exalted patriotism. Sir, in the lives and char- 
acters of these great men, there is much resembling those 
of the great triumvirate of the British Parliament. It 
differs principally in this: Burke preceded Fox and Pitt 
to the tomb. Webster survives Clay and Calhoun. 
When Fox and Pitt died, they left no peer behind them. 
Webster still lives, now that Calhoun and Clay are 
dead, the unrivaled statesman of his country. Like Fox 
and Pitt, Clay and Calhoun lived in troubled times. 
Like Fox and Pitt, they were each of them the leader of 
rival parties. Like Fox and Pitt they were idolized by 
their respective friends. Like Fox and Pitt, they died 
about the same time, and in the public service; and, as has 
been said of Fox and Pitt, Clay and Calhoun died with 
" their harness upon them." Like Fox and Pitt — 

" With more than mortal powers endow'd. 
How high they soar'd above the crowd; 
Theirs was no common party race, 
Jostling by dark intrigue for place- 
Like fabled gods their mighty war 
Shook realms and natio s in its jar. 
334 









Beneath each banner proud to stand, 
Look'd up the noblest of the land. 

» * * * * 

Here let their discord with tlicin die. 
Speak not for those a separate doom ; 
Whom fate made brothers in the tomb ; 
But search the land of living men, 
Where wilt thou find their like again ?" 



Mr. Venable, said: 

Mr. Speaker: I trust that I shall be pardoned for add- 
ing a few words upon this sad occasion. The life of the 
illustrious statesman, which has just terminated, is so inter- 
woven with our history, and the lustre of his great name 
so profusely shed over its pages, that simple admiration of 
his high qualities might well be my excuse. But it is a 
sacred privilege to draw near; to contemplate the end of 
the great and the good. It is profitable as well as purify- 
ing to look upon and realize the office of death in removing 
all that can excite jealousy or produce distrust, and to 
gaze upon the virtues which, like jewels, have survived 
his powers of destruction. The light which radiates from 
the life of a great and patriotic statesman is often dimmed 
by the mists which party conflicts throw around it. But 
the blast which strikes him down purifies the atmosphere 
which surrounded him in life, and it shines forth in bright 
examples and well-earned renown. It is then that we 
witness the sincere acknowledgment of gratitude by a 
people who, having enjoyed the benefits arising from the 
services of an eminent statesman, embalm his name in 
their memory and hearts. We should cherish such recol- 
lections as well from patriotism as self-respect. Ours, sir, 
is now the duty, in the midst of sadness, in this high place, 

335 



5 s e q i| i esof 



nimiiiii. 



in the face of our Republic, and before the world, to pay 
this tribute, by acknowledging the merits of our colleague, 
whose name has ornamented the journals of congress for 
nearly half a century. Few, very few, have ever com- 
bined the high intellectual powers and distinguished gifts 
of this illustrious senator. Cast in the finest mould by 
nature, he more than fulfilled the anticipations which were 
indulged by those who looked to a distinguished career as 
the certain result of that zealous pursuit of fame and use- 
fulness upon which he entered in early life. Of the inci- 
dents of that life it is unnecessary for me to speak — they 
are as familiar as household words, and must be equally 
familiar to those who come after us. But it is useful to 
refresh memory by recurrence to some of the events which 
marked his career. We know, sir, that there is much that 
is in common in the histories of distinguished men. The 
elements which constitute greatness are the same in all 
times; hence those who have been the admiration of their 
generations present in their lives much which, although 
really great, ceases to be remarkable, because illustrated 
by such numerous examples — 

" But there are deeds wliich should not pass away, 
And names that must not wither." 

Of such deeds the life of Henry Clay affords many 
and bright examples. His own name, and those with 
whom he associated, shall live with a freshness which time 
cannot impair, and shine with a brightness which passing 
years cannot dim. His advent into public life was as 
remarkable for the circumstances as it was brilliant in its 
effect. It was at a time in which genius and learning, 
statesmanship and eloquence, made the American congress 



336 



' ■■ ^" '-.>g g<1 



'TifTiTTiii,. 






the most august bodv in the world. He was the contem- 
porary of a race of statesmen, some of whom — then ad- 
ministering the government, and others retiring and 
retired from office — presented an array of ability unsur- 
passed in our history. The elder Adams, Jefferson, 
Madison, Gallatin, Clinton, and Monroe, stood before 
the Republic in the maturity of their fame; while Cal- 
houn, John Quincy Adams, Lowndes, Randolph, Craw- 
ford, Gaston and Cheves, with a host of others, rose a 
bright galaxy upon our horizon. He who won his spurs 
in such a field earned his knighthood. Distinction amid 
such competition was true renown — 

" The fame which a man "wins for himself is best — 
That he may call his own." 

It was such a fame that he made for himself in that most 
eventful era in our history. To me, sir, the recollections 
of that day, and the events which distinguish it, is filled 
with an overpowering interest. I never can forget my 
enthusiastic admiration of the boldness, the eloquence, and 
the patriotism of Henry Clay during the war of 1812. 
In the bright array of talent which adorned the congress 
of the United States; in the conflict growing out of the 
political events of that time; in the struggles of party, 
and amid the gloom and disasters which depressed the 
spirits of most men, and well-nigh paralyzed the energies 
of the administration, his cheerful face, high bearing, 
commanding eloquence and iron will, gave strength and 
consistency to those elements which finally gave, not only 
success, but glory, to the country. "When dark clouds hov- 
ered over us, and there was little to save from despair, 
the country looked with hope to Clay and Calhoun, to 

22 337 



^^s^^ 



fftfflH.liMiiif.iing lS 



Obse(|i(ic3 of 




Lowndes, and Crawfoed, and Cheves, and looked not in 
vain. The unbending will, the unshaken nerve, and the 
burning" eloquence of Henry Clay did as much to com- 
mand confidence and sustain hope as even the news of our 
first victory after a succession of defeats. Those great 
names are now canonized in history; he, too, has passed 
to join them on its pages. Associated in his long political 
life with the illustrious Calhoun, he survived him but two 
years. Many of us heard his eloquent tribute to his mem- 
ory in the senate chamber on the annunciation of his 
death. And we this day unite in a similar manifestation 
of reverential regard to him whose voice shall never more 
charm the ear, whose burning thoughts, borne on that 
medium, shall no more move the hearts of listening as- 
semblies. 

In the midst of the highest specimens of our race, he 
was always an equal; he was a man among men. Bold, 
skillful and determined, he gave character to the party 
which acknowledged him as a leader; impressed his opin- 
ions upon their minds, and an attachment to himself upon 
their hearts. No man, sir, can do this without being emi- 
nently great. Whoever attains this position must first 
overcome the aspirations of antagonist ambition; quiet 
the clamors of rivalry; hold in check the murmurs of 
jealousy, and overcome the instincts of vanity and self- 
love in the masses thus subdued to his control. But few 
men ever attain it. Very rare are the examples of those 
whose plastic touc'i forms the minds and directs the pur- 
poses of a great political party. This infallible indication 
of superiority belonged to Mr. Clay\ He has exercised 
that control during a long life; and now, through our 
broad land, the tidings of his death, borne with electric 

338 





i^ 



speed, have opened the fountains of sorrow. Every city, 
town, village and hamlet will be clothed with mourning; 
along our extended coast, the commercial and military 
marine, with flags drooping at half mast, own the bereave- 
ment; State-houses draped in black proclaim the extin- 
guishment of one of the great lights of senates; and 
minute-guns sound his requiem ! 

Sir, during the last five years I have seen the venerable 
John Quinx'Y Adams, John C. Calhoun and Henry Clay 
pass from among us, the legislators of our country. The 
race of giants who " were on the earth in those days" is 
■well-nigh gone. Despite their skill, their genius, their 
might, they have sunk under the stroke of time. They 
were our admiration and our glory; a few linger with 
us, the monuments of former greatness, the beacon-lights 
of a past age. The death of Henry Clay cannot fail to 
suggest melancholy associations to each member of this 
house. These walls have re-echoed the silvery tones of 
his bewitching voice; listening assemblies have hung upon 
his lips. The chair which you fill has been graced by his 
presence, while his commanding person and uuequaled 
parliamentary attainments inspired all with deference and 
respect. Chosen by acclamation because of his high qual- 
ifications, he sustained himself before the house and the 
country. In his supremacy with his party, and the unin- 
terrupted confidence which he enjoyed to the day of his 
death, he seems to have almost discredited the truth of 
those lines of the poet Laberius — 

" Non po&sunt primi esse omncs omni in tempore, 
Sumraum ad gradum cum claritfitis veneris, 
Consistcs icgre, et citius, quiim asccndas, cades." 

If not at all times first, he stood equal with the fore- 

339 





i'' 0h,seqqies of 



■mTiiiii 




most, and a brilliant rapid rise knew no decline in the 
confidence of those whose just appreciation of his merits 
had confirmed his title to renown. 

The citizens of other countries will deplore his death; 
the struggling patriots who, on our own continent, were 
cheered by his sympathies, and who must have perceived 
his influence in the recognition of their independence by 
this government, have taught their children to venerate 
his name. He won the civic crown, and the demonstra- 
tions of this hour own the worth of civil services. 

It was with great satisfaction that I heard my friend 
from Kentucky, [Mr. BeeckenridgeJ the immediate rep- 
resentative of Mr. Clay, detail a conversation which dis- 
closed the feelings of that eminent man in relation to his 
Christian hope. These, Mr. Speaker, are rich memorials, 
precious reminiscences. A Christian statesman is the 
glory of his age, and his memory will be glorious in after- 
times; it reflects a light coming from a source which 
clouds cannot dim nor shadows obscure. It was my priv- 
ilege, also, a short time since, to converse with this distin- 
guished statesman on the subject of his hopes in a future 
state. Feeling a deep interest, I asked him frankly what 
were his hopes in the world to which he was evidently 
hastening. " I am pleased," said he, " my friend, that you 
have introduced the subject. Conscious that I must die 
very soon, I love to meditate upon the most important of 
^^ all interests. I love to converse and to hear conversa- 
tions about them. The vanity of the world and its insuf- 
ficiency to satisfy the soul of man has long been a settled 
conviction of my mind. Man's inability to secure, by his 
own merits, the approbation of God, I feel to be true. I 
trust in the atonement of the Savior of men as the ground 





—- 


-^•*=v. 




Kimn: 


&ei]l'y 


Gl^,tj. 


% 



of my acccptaucc and my hope of salvation. My faith is 
feeble, but I hope in His mercy and trust in His promises." 
To such declarations I listened with the deepest interest, 
as I did on another occasion, when he said: " I am willing 
to abide the will of Heaven, and ready to die when that 
will shall determine it." 

He is gone, sir, professing the humble hope of a Chris- 
tian. That hope, alone, sir, can sustain you, or any of us. 
There is one lonely and crushed heart that has bowed 
before this afflictive event. Far away, at Ashland, a 
widowed wife, prevented, by feeble health, from attend- 
ing his bedside and soothing his painful hours, she has 
thought even the electric speed of the intelligence daily 
transmitted of his condition too slow for her aching, anx- 
ious bosom. She will find consolation in his Christian 
submission, and will draw all of comfort that such a case 
admits from the assurance that nothing was neglected by 
the kindness of friends which could supply her place. May 
the guardianship of the widow's God be her protection, 
and His consolations her support ! 

" All cannot be at all times first, 
To reach the top-most step of glory ; to stand there 
More hard. Even swifter than ive mount we fall." 




Mr. Hayen, said : 

Mr. Speaker : Representing a constituency distinguished 
for the constancy of its devotion to the political principles 
of Mr. Clay, and for its unwavering attachment to his 
fortunes and his person— sympathizing deeply witli those 
whose more intimate personal relations with him have 
made them feel most profoundly this general bereavement 

341 




T(ii/t:miTiii.T;in,imnrniu..i;,.i.i, .i... 



imPTim.i,, 



(9bsL'(]nies of 




— I desire to say a few words of him, since he has fallen 
amongst us, and been taken to his rest. 

After the finished eulogies which have been so eloquent- 
ly pronounced by the honorable gentlemen who have pre- 
ceded me, I will avoid a course of remark which mis-ht 
otherwise be deemed a repetition, and refer to the bearing 
of some of the acts of the deceased upon the interests and 
destinies of my own state. The influence of his public 
life, and of his purely Americaji character, the benefits of 
his wise forecast, and the results of his efforts for whole- 
some and rational progress, are nowhere more strongly 
exhibited than in the state of New York. 

Our appreciation of his anxiety for the general diffusion 
of knowledge and education, is manifested in our twelve 
thousand public libraries, our equal number of common 
schools, and a large number of higher institutions of 
learning, all of which draw portions of their support 
from the share of the proceeds of the public lands, which 
his wise policy gave to our state. Our whole people are 
thus constantly reminded of their great obligations to the 
statesman, whose death now afflicts the nation with sorrow. 
Our extensive public works, attest our conviction of the 
utility and importance of the system of internal improve- 
ments he so ably advocated; and their value and product- 
iveness, afford a most striking evidence of the soundness 
and wisdom of his policy. Nor has his influence been less 
sensibly felt in our agriculture, commerce, and manufac- 
tures. Every department of human industry acknowl- 
edges his fostering care, and the people of New York are 
in no small measure, indebted to his statesmanship for the 
wealth, comfort, contentment and happiness so widely and 
generally diffused throughout the state. 



iUiM'(l u»;ki 



[iTiggrTiiir 






Well may New York clierisli his memory and acknowl- 
edge, with gratitude, the benefits that his life has con- 
ferred. That memory will be cherished throughout the 
Ilepublic. 

When internal discord and sectional strife have threat- 
ened the integrity of the Union, his just weight of char- 
acter, his large experience, his powers of conciliation and 
acknowledged patriotism, have enabled him to pacify the 
angry passions of his countrymen, and to raise the bow of 
promise and of hope upon the clouds which have darkened 
the political horizon. 

He has passed from amongst us, ripe in wisdom and 
pure in character — full of years and full of honors — he 
has breathed his last amidst the blessings of a united and 
grateful nation. He was, in my judgment, particularly 
fortunate in the time of his death. 

He lived to see his country, guided by his wisdom, come 
once again unhurt, out of trying sectional difficulties and 
domestic strife; and he has closed his eyes in death upon 
that country, whilst it is in the enjoyment of profound 
peace, busy with industry, and blessed with unequaled 
prosperity. 

It can fall to the lot of but few to die amidst so warm 
a gratitude flowing from the hearts of their countrymen; 
and none can leave a brighter example, or a more endur- 
ing fame. 




Mr. Brooks, of New York, said: 

Mr. Speaker: I rise to add my humble tribute to the 

memory of a great and good man, now to be gathered to 

his fathers. I speak for, and from, a community in wliose 

heart is enshrined the name of him whom we mourn; who, 

:3i;i 



HtHilllil- 

i'W»iiiliMilHliiffifcrP^rfa+^ 



■'■'"■■■'' 1.7^^ 



nrmnin; 



0bsj(]i|lcs of 



however much Virginia, the land of his birth, or Ken- 
tucky, the land of his adoption, may love him, is, if possi- 
ble, loved where I live, yet more. If idolatry had been 
Christian, or allowable even, he would have been our idol. 
But as it is, for a quarter of a century now, his bust, his 
portrait, or some medal, has been one of our household 
gods, gracing not alone the saloons and the halls of 
wealth, but the humblest room or work-shop of almost 
every mechanic or laborer. Proud monuments of his 
policy as a statesman, as my colleague has justly said, are 
all about us; and we owe to him, in a good degree, our 
growth, our greatness, our prosperity and happiness as a 
people. 

The great field of Henry Clay, Mr. Speaker, has been 
here, on the floor of this house, and in the other wing of 
the capitol. He has held other posts of higher nominal 
distinction, but they are all eclipsed by the brilliancy of 
his career as a congressman. What of glory he has ac- 
quired, or what most endear him to his countrymen, have 
been won, here, amid these pillars, under these domes of 
the capitol. 

" Si quasris monumentum, circumspice." 

The mind of Mr. Clay has been the governing mind of 
the country, more or less, ever since he has been on the 
stage of public action. In a minority or majority — more, 
perhaps, even in a minority than in a majority, he seems to 
have had some commission, divine, as it were, to persuade, 
to convince, to govern other men. His patriotism, his 
grand conceptions, have created measures which the secret 
fascination of his manners, in-doors, or his irresistible elo- 
quence without, have enabled him, almost always, to frame 



IM 



iicDi'llCinu. 



into laws. Adverse administrations have yielded to him, 
or been borne down by him, or he has taken them captive 
as a leader, and carried the country and congress witli 
him. This power he has wielded now for nearly half a 
century, with nothing but reason and eloquence to back 
him. And yet, when he came here, years ago, he came from 
a then frontier state of this Union, heralded by no loud 
trumpet of fame, nay, quite unknown! unfortified even by 
any position, social or pecuniary; — to quote his own 
words, " My only heritage has been infancy, indigence, 
and ignorance." 

In these days, Mr. Speaker, when mere civil qualifica- 
tions for high public places — when long civil training and 
practical statesmanship are held subordinate — a most dis- 
couraging prospect would be rising up before our young 
men, were it not for some such names as Lowndes, Craw- 
ford, Clinton, Gaston, Calhoun, Clay, and the like, 
scattered along the pages of our history, as stars or con- 
stellations along a cloudless sky. They shine forth and 
show us, that if the chief magistracy cannot be won by 
such qualifications, a memory among men can be — a hold 
upon posterity, as firm, as lustrous — nay, more imperisha- 
ble. In the Capitolium of Rome there are long rows of 
marble slabs, on which are recorded the names of the Ro- 
man consuls ; but the eye wanders over this wilderness of 
letters but to light up and kindle upon some Cato or 
Cicero. To win such fame, thus unsullied, as Mr. Clay 
has won, is worth any man's ambition. And how was it 
won ? By courting the shifting gales of popularity ? No, 
never ! By truckling to the schemes, the arts, and seduc- 
tions of the demagogue? Never, never! His hardest 
battles, as a public man — his greatest, most illustrious 

345 



nnnr.inrnfrtrrtlffgffflfflKT? 



c"isc(]i|ies of 



'r lliji'i'h. 



achievements — have been against, at first, an adverse pub- 
lic opinion. To gain an imperishable name, he has often 
braved the perishable popularity of the moment. That 
sort of courage which, in a public man, I deem the highest 
of all courage, that sort of courage most necessary, under 
our form of government, to guide as well as to save a state, 
Mr. Clay was possessed of more than any public man I 
ever knew. Physical courage, valuable, indispensable 
though it be, we share but with the brute ; but moral 
courage, to dare to do right amid all temptations to do 
wrong, is, as it seems to me, the very highest species, the 
noblest heroism, under institutions like ours. "I had 
rather be right than be President," was Mr. Clay's sub- 
lime reply when pressed to refrain from some measure that 
would mar his popularity. These lofty words were the 
clue of his whole character — the secret of his hold upon 
the heads as well as hearts of the American people; nay, 
the key of his immortality. 

Another of the keys, Mr. Speaker, of his universal repu- 
tation, was his intense nationality. When taunted, but 
recently, almost within our hearing, as it were, on the floor 
of the Senate by a southern senator, as being a southern 
man unfaithful to the south — his indignant but patriotic 
exclamation was, " I know no south, no north, no east, 
no west. The country, the whole country, loved, rever- 
enced, adored such a man. The soil of Virginia may be 
his birth-place, the sod of Kentucky will cover his grave — 
what was mortal they claim — but the spirit, the soul, the 
genius of the mighty man, the immortal part, these belong 
to his country and to his God. 



346 





aEBan 
'Tin 



Mr. Faulkner, of Virginia, said: 





Representing-, in part, the state which gave birth to that 
distinguished man whose death has just been announced 
upon this floor, and having for many years held toward 
him the most cordial relations of friendship, personal and 
political, I feel that I should fail to discharge an appro- 
priate duty, if I permitted this occasion to pass by without 
some expression of the feeling which such an event is so 
well calculated to elicit. Sir, this intelligence docs not 
fall upon our ears unexpectedly. For months the public 
mind has been prepared for the great national loss which 
we now deplore; and yet, as familiar as the daily and hourly 
reports have made us with his hopeless condition and 
gradual decline, and although 

" Like a shadow thrown 
Softly and sweetly from a passing cloud, 
Death fell upon him." 

it is impossible that a light of such surpassing splendor 
should be, as it is now, forever extinguished from our view, 
without producing a shock, deeply and painfully felt, to 
the utmost limits of this great Republic. Sir, we all feel 
that a mighty intellect has passed from among us; but, 
happily for this country, happily for mankind, not until it 
had accomplished, to some extent, the exalted mission for 
which it had been sent upon this earth; not until it had 
reached the full maturity of its usefulness and power; not 
until it had shed a bright and radiant lustre over our 
national renown; not until time had enabled it to bequeath 
the rich treasures of its thought and experience for the 
guidance and instruction of the present and of succeeding 



generations. 



347 



rni?inriii 



C)'ise(]i|ies of 



Sir, it is difficult, — it is impossible — within the limit 
allowed for remarks upon occasions of this kind, to do 
justice to a great historical character like Henry Clay. 
He was one of that class of men whom Scaliger designates 
as homdnes centenarii — men that appear upon the earth but 
once in a century. His fame is the growth of years, and 
it would require time to unfold the elements which have 
combined to impart to it so much of stability and 'gran- 
deur. Volumes have already been written, and volumes 
will continue to be written, to record those eminent and 
distinguished public services which have placed him in the 
front rank of American statesmen and patriots. The 
highest talents, stimulated by a fervid and patriotic en- 
thusiasm, has already and will continue to exhaust its 
powers to portray those striking and generous incidents 
of his life — those shining and captivating qualities of his 
heart, which have made him one of the most beloved, as he 
was one of the most admired, of men; and yet the subject 
itself will remain as fresh and exhaustless as if hundreds 
of the best intellects of the land had not quaffed the in- 
spiration of their genius from the ever-gushing and over- 
flowins; fountains of his fame. It could not be that a 
reputation so grand and collossal as that which attaches 
to the name of Henry Clay, could rest, for its base, upon 
any single virtue, however striking; nor upon any single 
act, no matter how marked or distinguished. Such a 
reputation as he has left behind him, could only be the 
result of a long life of illustrious public service. And 
such in truth it was. For nearly half a century he has 
been a prominent actor in all the stirring and eventful 
scenes of American history, fashioning and moulding many 
of the most important measures of public policy by his 

348 




Cnnmniu:: 



iUiirii Clglj. " 









bold and sagacious mind, and arresting others by his un- 
conquerable energy and resistless force of eloquence. And 
however much the members of this body may differ in 
opinion as to the wisdom of many of his views of national 
domestic policy, there is not one upon this floor — no, sir, 
not one in this nation— who will deny to him frankness 
and directness as a public man; a genius for statesmanship 
of the highest order; extraordinary capacities for public 
usefulness, and an ardent and elevated patriotism, without 
stain and without reproach. 

In referring to a career of public service so varied and 
extended as that of Mr. Clay, and to a character so rich 
in every great and manly virtue, it is only possible to 
glance at a few of the most prominent of those points of 
his personal history, which have given to him so distin- 
guished a place in the affections of his countrymen. 

In the whole character of Mr. Clay, in all that attached 
or belonged to it, you find nothing that is not essentially 
American. Born in the darkest period of our revolu- 
tionary struggle; reared from infancy to manhood among 
those great minds which gave the first impulse to that 
mighty movement, he early imbibed and sedulously cher- 
ished those great principles of civil and political liberty 
which he so brilliantly illustrated in his subsequent life, 
and which has made his name a watch-word of hope and 
consolation to the oppressed of all the earth. In his 
intellectual training, he was the pure creation of our own 
republican soil. Few, if any, allusions are to be seen in 
his speeches or writings, to ancient or modern literature, 
or to the thoughts and ideas of other men. His country, 
its institutions, its policy, its interests, its destiny, form 
the exclusive topics of those eloquent harangues which, 

349 



1 



i^ 



simtm 



Obsequies of 



I'-IIUlm 



while they are destitute of the elaborate finish, have all 
the ardor and intensity of thought, the earnestness of 
purpose, the cogency of reasoning, the vehemence of style, 
and the burning patriotism, which mark the productions 
of the great Athenian orator. 

One of the most distinguishing characteristics of Mr. 
Clay, as a public man, was his loyalty to truth and to the 
honest convictions of his own mind. He deceived no man: 
he would not permit his own heart to be deceived by any 
of those seductive influences which too often warp the 
judgment of men in public station. He never paused to 
consider how far any step which he was about to take 
would lead to his own personal advancement; he never 
calculated what he might lose or what he might gain by 
his advocacy of, or his opposition to, any particular 
measure. His single inquiry was, Is it right ? Is it in 
accordance with the Constitution of the land ? Will it 
redound to the permanent welfare of the country ? When 
satisfied upon these points, his determination was fixed; 
his purpose was immovable. " I would rather be right 
than President," was the expression of his genuine feel- 
ings, and the principle by which he was controlled in his 
public career — a saying worthy of immortality, and proper 
to be inscribed upon the heart of every young man in 
this Republic. And yet, sir, with all of that personal and 
moral intrepidity which so eminently marked the charac- 
ter of Mr. Clay; with his well-known inflexibility of 
purpose and unyielding resolution, such was the genuine 
sincerity of his patriotism, and such his thorough compre- 
hension of those principles of compromise, upon which 
the whole structure of our government was founded, that 
no one was more prompt to relax the rigor of his policy 

350 









the uiomcnt he perceived that it was calculated U) disturb 
the harmony of the states, or to endano-cr, in any degree, 
the stability of the government. "With him the love of 
this Union was a passion — an absorbing sentiment — which 
gave color to every act of his public life. It triumphed 
over party; it triumphed over policy; it subdued the 
natural lierceness and haughtiness of his temper, and 
brought him into the most kindly and cordial relations 
with those who, upon all other questions, were deeply 
and bitterly opposed to him. It has been asserted, sir, 
upon high medical authority, and doubtless with truth, 
that his life was, in all probability, shortened ten years by 
the arduous and extraordinary labors which he assumed 
at the memorable session of 1850. If so, he has added 
the crowning glory of the martyr to the spotless fame of 
the patriot; and we may well hope that a great national 
pacification, purchased at such a sacrifice, will long con- 
tinue to cement the bonds of this now happy and prosper- 
ous Union. 

Mr. Clay possessed, in an eminent degree, the qualities 
of a great popular leader; and history, I will assume to 
say, affords no example in any republic, ancient or modern, 
of any individual that so fearlessly carried out the convic- 
tions of his own judgment, and so sparingly flattered the 
prejudices of popular feeling, who, for so long a period, 
exercised the same controlling influence over the public 
mind. Earnest in whatever measure he sustained, fearless 
in attack — dexterous in defence — abounding in intellectual 
resource — eloquent in debate — of inflexible purpose, and 
with a " courage never to submit or yield," no man ever 
lived with higher qualifications to rally a desponding 
party, or to lead an embattled host to victory. That he 

351 



IE 



fTtnnuinu, 



(i)b,^c(]i|i^s of 



never attained the highest post of honorable ambition in 
this comitry, is not to be ascribed to any want of capacity 
as a popular leader, nor to the absence of those qualities 
which attract the fidelity and devotion of " troops " of 
admiring friends. It was the fortune of Napoleon, at a 
critical period of his destiny, to be brought into collision 
with the star of Wellington ; and it was the fortune of 
Henry Clay to have encountered, in hi& political orbit, 
another great and original mind, gifted with equal power 
for commanding success, and blessed with more fortunate 
elements, concurring at the time, of securing popular 
favor. The struggle was such as might have been antici- 
pated from the collision of two such fierce and powerful 
rivals. For near a quarter of a century this great Eepub- 
lic has been convulsed to its centre by the divisions which 
have sprung from their respective opinions, policy and 
personal destinies; and even now, when they have both 
been removed to a higher and a better sphere of existence, 
and when every unkind feeling has been quenched in the 
triumphs of the grave, this country still feels, and for 
years will continue to feel, the influence of those agita- 
tions to which their powerful and impressive characters 
gave impulse. 

But I must pause. If I were to attempt to present all 
the aspects in which the character of this illustrious man 
will challenge the applause of history, I should fatigue 
the House, and violate the just limit allowed for such 
remarks. 

I cannot, however, conclude, sir, without making some 
more special allusion to Mr. Clay, as a native of that 
state which I have the honor in part to represent upon this 
floor. We are all proud, and very properly proud, of the 

352 






In ,,l,l„l ! , lllUHiE 



distinguished men to whom our respective states have 
given birth. It is a just and laudable emulation, and 
one, in a confederated government like ours, propcV to be 
encouraged. And while men, like Mr. Clay, very rapidly 
rise above the confined limits of a state reputation, and 
acquire a national fame, in which all claim, and all have 
an equal interest, still there is a propriety and fitness in 
preserving the relation between the individual and his 
state. Virginia has given birth to a large number of men 
who have, by their distinguished talent and services, 
impressed their names upon the hearts and memories of 
their countrymen; but certainly, since the colonial era, 
she has given birth to no man, who, in the massive and 
gigantic proportions of his character, and in the splendor 
of his native endowments, can be compared to Henry 
Clay. At an early age, he emigrated from his native 
state, and found a home in Kentucky. In a speech which 
he delivered in the Senate_of the United States, in Feb- 
ruary, 1842, — and which I well remember— upon the oc- 
casion of his resigning his seat in that body, he expressed 
the wish that, when that event should occur, which has 
now clothed this city in mourning, and filled the nation 
with grief, his " earthly remains should be laid under the 
green sod of Kentucky, with those of her gallant and 
patriotic sons." 

Sir, however gratifying it might be to us that his 
remains should be transferred to his native soil, to there 
mingle with the ashes of Washington, Jefferson, Madi- 
son, Lee and Henry, we cannot complain of the very 
natural preference which he has himself expressed. If 
Virginia did give him birth— Kentucky has nourished 
him in his manhood— has freely lavished upon him her 

23 333 



a 



• 






(!)b3ecii(ie.s of 



lUUIUlL. 



higlicst honors— lias shielded him from harm when the 
clouds of calumny and detraction gathered heavily and 
lowering'ly about him; and she has watched over his fame 
with the tenderness and zeal of a mother. Sir, it is not 
to be w^ondered that he should have expressed the wish he 
did, to be laid by the side of her gallant and patriotic sous. 
Happy Kentucky ! Hapi)y in having an adopted son so 
worthy of her highest honors. Happy, in the unshaken 
fidelity and loyalty w^th which, for near half a century, 
those honors have been so steadfastly and gracefully ac- 
corded to him. 

Sir, whilst Virginia, in the exercise of her own proper 
judgment, has differed from Mr. Clay in some of his views 
of national policy, she has never, at any period of his pub- 
lic career, failed to regard him with pride, as one of her 
most distinguished sons; to honor the purity and the man- 
liness of his character, and to award to him the high credit 
of an honest and sincere devotion to his country's w^elfare. 
And now, sir, that death has arrested forever the pulsa- 
tions of that mighty heart, and sealed in eternal silence 
those eloquent lips upon whose accents thousands have so 
often hung in rapture, I shall stand justified in saying, that 
a wail of lamentation will be heard from her people — her 
whole people — reverberating through her mountains and 
valleys, as deep, as genuine, and as sincere as that, wdiich 
I knoW' , will sw^ell Iho noble hearts and the heaving bosoms 
of the people of his (. wn cherished, and beloved Kentucky. 

Sir, as I walked to the capitol this morning, every object 
which attracted my ;\.', admonished me that a nation's 
benefactor had depa m>lI from amongst us. He is gone! 
Henry Clay, the idol of his friends, the ornament of the 
senate chamber, the [rridc of his country; he wdiose pres- 






fiei]i-yt;ii|i|. 



I'I'IIIMI, 



ence jratliercd crowds of his admirin? fcllow-nien around 
him. as if he liad boon one descended from above, has pass- 
ed forever from our view. 

"His soul, enlarged from its vile b mis, Ims gone 
To that REFULGENT wovld, wlici e it shall swim 
In liiiuiil light, and float on seas of bliss." 

But the memory of his virtues and of his services will be 
ii-ratefully embalmed in the hearts of his countrymen, and 
o-enerations yet unborn Avill be taught to lisp, with rever- 
ence and enthusiasm, the name of Henry Clay. 



Mr. Paeker, of Indiana, said: 

Mr. Speaker: This is a solemn — a consecrated hour. 
And I would not detain the members of the House from 
indulging in the silence of their own feelings, so grateful 
to hearts chastened as ours. 

But I cannot restrain an expression from a bosom pained 
with its fullness. 

When my young thoughts first took cognizance of the 
fact that I have a country — my eye was attracted by the 
magniticent proportions of Henry Clay. 

The idea absorbed me then, that he was, above all other 
men, the embodiment of my country's genius. 

I have watched him; I have studied him; I have admired 
him — and, God forgive me ! for he was but a man, '' of like 
passions with us" — I fear I have idolized him, until this hour. 

But he has gone from among men; and it is for rs now 
to awake and apply ourselves, with renewed fervor and 
increased fidelity, to the welfare of the country he loved 
so well and served so truly and so long — the glorious 
country yet saved to us ! 

355 



* 



: *'if ''^s 



nfimmfini 



iiiin'iTnniiiiinnn.inTHLj 



•' 



BTtllTMlini, 



(9b5e(]i|ies of 




Yes, Henry Clay has fallen, at last! — as the ripe oak 
falls in the stillness of the forest. But the verdant and 
gorgeous richness of his glories will only fade and wither 
from the earth, when his country's history shall have been 
forgotten. 

" One generation passeth away and another generation 
Cometh." Thus it has been from the beginning, and thus 
it will be, until time shall be no longer. 

Yesterday morning, at eleven o'clock, the spirit of 
Henry Clay — so long the pride and glory of his own 
country, and the admiration of all the world — was yet 
with us, though struggling to be free. Ere "high noon" 
came, it had passed over " the dark river," through the 
gate, into the celestial city, inhabited by all the "just men 
made perfect." May not our rapt vision contemplate him 
there, this day, in sweet communion with the dear friends 
that have gone before him? — with Madison, and Jeffer- 
son, and Washington, and Henry, and Franklin — with 
the eloquent Tully, with the " divine Plato," with Aaron 
the Levite, who could " speak well " — with all the great 
and good, since and before the flood ! 

His princely tread has graced these aisles for the last 
time. These halls will wake no more to the magic music 
of his voice. 

Did that tall spirit, in its etherial form, enter the courts 
of the upper sanctuar}^ bearing itself comparable with tlie 
spirits there, as was his walk among men ? 

Did the mellifluous tones of his greeting there enrapture 
the hosts of Heaven, comparably with his strains "to stir 
men's blood " on earth ? 

Then, may we not fancy, when it was announced to the 
inhabitants of that better country. He comes ! He comes ! 



356 



TBSB 



ifcpfyCi^y. 




tliere ^vas a rustling of angcl-vrings — a thrilling joy — %ip 
there, only to be witnessed once in an earthly age ? 

Adieu ! — a last adieu to thee, Henry Clay ! 

The hearts of all thy countrymen are melted, on this 
day, because of the thought that thou art gone. 

Could we have held the hand of the " insatiate archer,"' 
thou hadst not died; but thou wouldst have tarried with 
us, in the full grandeur of thy greatness, until we had no 
longer need of a country. 

But we thank our Heavenly Father that thou wast given 
to us; and that thou didst survive so long. 

We would cherish thy memory while we live, as our 
country's jewel — than which none is richer. And we 
will teach our children the lesson of matchless patriotism 
thou hast taught us; with the fond hope that our Liberty 
and our Union may only expire with 

" iTfjc ILast of Cartf)." 



Mr. Gentry, of Tennessee, said : 

Mr. Speaker : I do not rise to pronounce an eulogy on 
the life and character and public services of the illustrious 
orator and statesman, whose death this nation deplores. 
Suitably to perform that task, a higher eloquence than I 
possess might essay in vain. The gushing tears of the na- 
tion, the deep grief which oppresses the hearts of more 
than twenty millions of people, constitute a more eloquent 
eulogium upon the life and character and patriotic services 
of Henry Clay, than the power of language can express. 
In no part of our country is that character more admired, 
or those public services more appreciated, than in the 
state which I have the honor, in part, to represent. I 

So7 



claim for the people of that state a full participation in 
the general woe which the sad announcement of to-day 
will everywhere inspire. 



Mr. Bowie, of Maryland, said : 

Mr. Speaker : I rise not to utter the measured phrases 
of premeditated woe, but to speak as my constituency would, 
if they stood around the grave now opening to receive the 
mortal remains, not of a statesman only, but of a beloved 
friend. 

If there is a state in this Union, other than Kentucky, 
which sends up a wail of more bitter and sincere sorrow 
than another, that state is Maryland. 

In her midst, the departed statesman was a frequent 
and a welcome guest. At many a board, and many a fire- 
side, his noble form was the light of the eyes, the idol of 
the heart. Throughout her borders, in cottage, hamlet, 
and city, his name is a household word, his thoughts are 
familiar sentences. 

Though not permitted to be the first at his cradle, Mary- 
land would be the last at his tomb. 

Through all the phases of political fortune, amid all the 
storms which darkened his career, Maryland cherished him 
in her inmost heart, as the most gifted, patriotic, and elo- 
quent of men. To this hour, prayers ascend from many 
domestic altars, evening and morning, for his temporal 
comfort and eternal welfare. In the language of inspira- 
tion, Maryland would exclaim, " There is a prince and a 
great man, fallen this day, in Israel." Daughters of Amer- 
ica! weep for him " who hath clothed you in scarlet and 
fine linen." 

S58 



mm, 



ij-eohtj Clqij 



The husbandman at his plough, the artisan at the anvil, 
and the seaman on the mast, will pause and drop a tear 
when he hears Clay is no more. 

The advocate of freedom in both hemispheres, he will be 
lamented alike on the shores of the Hellespont and the 
banks of the Mississippi and Orinoco. The freed men of 
Liberia, learning and practicing the art of self-government, 
and civilizing Africa, have lost in him a patron and pro- 
tector, a father and a friend. America mourns the eclipse 
of a luminary, which enlightened and illuminated the con- 
tinent; the United States, a counsellor of deepest wisdom 
and purest purpose; mankind, the advocate of human 
rights and constitutional liberty. 



Mr. AValsh, of Maryland, said : 

Mr. Speaker : The illustrious man, whose death we this 
day mourn, was so long my political leader — so long almost 
the object of my personal idolatry — that I cannot allow 
that he shall go down to the grave, without a word at 
least of affectionate remembrance — without a tribute to a 
memory which will exact tribute as long as a heart shall 
be found to beat within the bosom of civilized man, and 
human agency shall be adequate, in any form, to give them 
an expression; and even, sir, if I had no heart-felt sigh 
to pour out here— if I had no tear for that coffin's lid, 1 
should do injustice to those whose representative in part i 
am, if I did not, in this presence, and at this time, raise the 
voice to swell the accents of the profoundest public sorrow. 

The state of Maryland has always vied with Kentucky 
in love and adoration of his name. Her people have gath- 
ered around him with all the fervor of a lirst affection. 





PWiM iiWWiilillllUKLiJ 



,'/ C)63ec|i|ics of 



aud with more than its duration. Troops of friends have 
ever clustered about his pathway with a personal devotion 
which each man of them regarded as the highest individual 
honor — friends, sir, to whose fire-sides the tidings of his 
death will go with all the withering inCucnces which are 
felt when household ties are severed. 

I wish, sir, I could offer now a proper memorial for such 
a subject and such an affection. But as I strive to utter it, 
I feel the disheartening influence of the well-known truth, 
that in view of death all minds sink into triteness. It 
would seem, indeed, sir, that the great leveler of our race 
would vindicate his title to be so considered, by making all 
men think alike in regard to his visitation — " the thousand 
thoughts that begin and end in one " — the desolation here 
— the eternal hope hereafter — are influences felt alike by 
the lowest intellect and the loftiest genius. 

Mr, Speaker, a statesman for more than fifty years in 
the councils of his country, whose peculiar charge it was 
to see that the Eepublic suffered no detriment — a patriot 
for all times, all circumstances, and all emergencies — has 
passed away from the trials and triumphs of the w^orld, 
and gone to his reward. Sad as are the emotions which 
such an event would ordinarily excite, their intensity is 
heightened by the matters so fresh within the memories of 
us all: 

" Oh ! think how to his Latest day. 
When death, just hovering, chaim"d his prey. 
With Palinurus' unalter'd mood, 
Firm at his dangerous post he stood, 
Each call for needful rest repell'd. 
With dying hand the rudder held ; 
Then while on freedom's thousand plains 
One unpolluted church remains. 
Whose peaceful bells ne'er sent around 
360 




II 








The bloody tocsin's maddening sound, 
Eut still, njon the hallow'd day, 
Convoke the swains to praise and pray, 
While faith and civil peace arc dear, 
Greet his cold marble with a tear. 
He who preserved them — Clay lies here.'' 

Ill a character, Mr. Speaker, so illustrious and beautiful, 
it is difficult to select any point for particular notice, from 
those which go to make up its noble proportions ; but avc 
may now., around his honored grave, call to grateful recol- 
lection that invincible spirit which no personal sorrow 
could sully, and no disaster could overcome. Be assured, 
sir, that he has, in this regard, left a legacy to the young 
men of the Republic, almost as sacred and as dear as that 
liberty of which his life was a blessed illustration. 

We can all remember, sir, when adverse political results 
disheartened his friends, and made them feel even as men 
without hope, that his own clarion voice was still heard 
in the purpose and the pursuit of right, as bold and as elo- 
quent as when it first proclaimed the freedom of the seas, 
and its talismauic tones struck off the badges of bondage 
from the lands of the Incas, and the plains of Marathon. 
Mr. Speaker, in the exultation of the statesman he did 
not forget the duties of the man. He was an affectionate 
adviser on all points wherein inexperienced youth might 
require counsel. He was a disinterested sympathizer in 
personal sorrows that called for consolation. He was ever 
upright and honorable in all the duties incident to his re- 
lation in life. 

To an existence so lovely, Heaven in its mercy granted 
a fitting and appropriate close. It was the prayer, Mr. 
Speaker, of a distinguished citizen, who died some years 
since in the metropolis, even while his spirit was fluttering 

21 361 




TiininiTT;';— — 



for its final flight, that he might depart gracefully. It may 
not be presumptuous to say, that what was in that instance 
the aspiration of a chivalric gentleman, was in this the re- 
alization of the dying Christian, in which was blended all 
that human dignity could require, with all that Divine 
grace had conferred; in which the firmness of the man was 
only transcended by the fervor of the penitent. 

A short period before his death he remarked to one by 
his bedside, " that he was fearful he was becoming selfish, 
as his thoughts were entirely withdrawn from the world, 
and centered upon eternity." This, sir, was but the puri- 
fication of his noble spirit from all the dross of earth — a 
happy illustration of what the religious muse has so sweet- 
ly sun J 



^g 



" No sin to stain— no lure to stay 
The soul, as home she springs ; 
Thy sunshine on her joyful way, 
Thy freedom in her wings." 

Mr. Speaker, the solemnities of this hour may soon be 
forgotten. Wo may come back from the new-made grave 
only still to show that we consider "eternity the bubble, 
life and time the enduring substance." We may not pause 
long enough by the brink to ask which of us, revelers of 
to-day, shall next bo at rest. But, be assured, sir, that 
upon the records of mortality will never be inscribed a 
name more illustrious than that of the statesman, patriot, 
and friend whom the nation mourns. 

The question was then put on the adoption of the reso- 
lutions proposed by Mr. Breckinridge, and they were 
unanimously adopted. 



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